Bargain-hunting is expected to persist this week after the market entered the bear market territory last week.
“With four straight weeks of decline, we expect bargain hunting to ensue. However, we may not see a complete turnaround yet as sentiment could remain bearish,” Philstocks Financial Inc. research head Japhet Tantiangco said.
He said investors could still be concerned with how the Philippine economy would fare this 2025 following its below target performance last year, and how the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas could help given that the US Federal Reserve is slowing down with its policy easing.
He said investors are expected to watch out for upcoming economic data for clues.
These include the S&P Global Philippines Manufacturing PMI, January 2025 inflation rate and December 2024 labor market data.
The PSEi dropped 6.89 percent last week to close at 5,862.59, while the broader all-shares index declined 4.37 percent to 3,520.32.
Average daily value traded improved to P9.411 billion from previous week’s average of P4.23 billion.
Foreign investors were net buyers, with net inflows reaching P72.8 million from previous week’s net outflows of P2.5 billion.
From its immediate peak of 7,604.61 which was posted last Oct. 7, 2024, the market has declined by 22.9 percent.
Given the market’s recent decline the index is seen trading at 5,700 to 6,000.