Manila: The local stock market experienced a downturn due to profit-taking, while the peso ended weak on Monday. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) saw a decline of 0.81 percent, closing at 6,359.63. Similarly, the All Shares index decreased by 0.58 percent, settling at 3,719.26 points.

According to Philippines News Agency, the market’s pullback to the 6,300 level was attributed to profit-taking as investors awaited a fresh inflation report expected to be released on Tuesday. Regina Capital Development Corp.’s head of sales, Luis Limlingan, noted this trend in the market.

All market counters ended in negative territory, with Holding Firms suffering the most significant losses, dropping by 1.61 percent to 5,357.68. This was followed by Mining and Oil, which fell by 1.53 percent to 9,456.89; Services, down by 0.73 percent to 1,978.52; Property, which declined by 0.46 percent to 2,299.67; Financials, falling 0.45 percent to 2,462.59; and Industrial, which decreased by 0.17 percent to 8,931.82.

The market recorded a slight edge of decliners over gainers at 93 to 92, with 61 counters remaining unchanged.

In the foreign exchange market, the Philippine peso weakened, closing at 55.77 to the US dollar, down from the 55.57 finish last week. The peso opened the day at 55.57, compared to the prior starting level of 55.90 to the dollar. Throughout the day, the exchange rate varied between 55.38 and 55.80, resulting in an average of 55.54 to the greenback. Notably, the volume of trade increased to USD2.3 billion from the previous USD2.1 billion.