PH stock market declines further on Omicron variant concerns

MANILA – The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) slipped by 1.07 percent, or 77.56 points, to 7,200.88 Monday as the new coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) variant continues to bring concerns among investors.

All shares went down by 0.86 percent, or 33.26 points, to 3,838.13.

All counters ended in the negative territory, except for the Services index, which rose by 0.51 percent, or 10 points, to 1,986.48.

“Philippine shares plunged to end the month of November as the new Covid-19 variant found in South Africa triggered a global shift away from risk assets. Heading into the week, Covid-19 developments are expected to rule the market once again in light of the Omicron variant,” Regina Capital Development Corp. managing director Luis Limlingan said.

The industrial sector led this day’s losses, which declined by 1.71 percent, or 181.67 points, to close November’s trading at 10,439.75.

This was followed by Holding Firms, down by 1.53 percent, or 107.43 points to 6,932.84; Financials, down by 1.05 percent, or 16.65 points, to 1,569.85; Property, down by 0.82 percent, or 27.18 points, to 3,297.13; and Mining and Oil, down by 0.47 percent, or 44.76 points to 9,440.56.

The volume of shares traded this day reached nearly 2 billion amounting to PHP28.02 billion.

Some 150 listed firms recorded decrements in shares, 57 firms registered gains, and 45 were left unchanged.

“Scientists are urgently trying to learn more about the B.1.1.529 strain of coronavirus which has already spurred international travel bans,” Limlingan added.

Concerns on the Omicron variant did not only grip the Southeast Asian markets like Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand, which closed the day with declines, but also Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite.

“The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 905.04 points, or -2.53 percent, for its worst day of the year, closing at 34,899.34. The S&P 500 lost -2.27 percent to close at 4,594.62, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped -2.23 percent to finish at 15,491.66. The Dow was down more than 1,000 points at session lows,” Limlingan said.