Manila, March 7, 2026, 16:29 PHT
- PSEi slid 4.40% for the week through March 6, closing out at 6,320.41.
- Mining and Oil took the hardest hit among sectors. For the week, foreign investors closed out as net sellers.
- Petron jumped 21.71%. Ayala Corp dropped 10.33% for the week on the exchange.
Philippine stocks tumbled to close out the week, as the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped 4.40% to 6,320.41 over the March 2-6 period. Miners and banks took a hit, and foreign investors switched to net selling. Yet, exchange data put the 30-stock PSEi up 4.42% year to date.
Stocks slipped as traders in Manila watched for fresh signs of inflation, with the Middle East turmoil feeding into oil costs and complicating the outlook for rates, the peso, and corporate budgets. Headline inflation accelerated to 2.4% in February. Officials singled out energy prices as a major worry, warning they could halt fuel excise taxes if global oil tops $80 a barrel.
Thursday’s rebound quickly lost steam by Friday, reflecting persistent nerves in the market. “The local market bounced back as investors hunted for bargains” on optimism the government might soften the impact of rising oil prices, Philstocks Financial research manager Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said via Viber. Over at Regina Capital Development, head of sales Luis A. Limlingan pointed to “hopes of possible talks between Iran and the US,” adding that inflation coming in line with forecasts offered some relief to sentiment. BusinessWorld Online
The PSEi swung sharply this week. Monday’s 2.79% plunge set the tone, followed by a 0.29% uptick on Tuesday. Losses deepened Wednesday as the index slid 2.13%. A 1.15% bounce Thursday gave some respite, but the week wrapped with a 0.94% dip on Friday.
Mining and oil slumped 8.69% this week, the largest drop among sectors. Financials lost 6.62%, while holding firms gave up 5.81%. Services fared better, down just 0.97%. Property ended the week 2.99% lower.
Petron Corp jumped 21.71% for the week, exchange data showed. DigiPlus Interactive also posted strong gains, rising 12.67%. San Miguel Corp added 5.81%. On the downside, Cebu Air dropped sharply—off 13.19%. JG Summit shed 12.67%. Ayala Corp ended the week lower by 10.33%.
Foreign investors offloaded about 947 million pesos ($16.2 million) from March 2 to 6, a sharp reversal from net buying of roughly 6.01 billion pesos the previous week, figures from the same exchange report show. Market capitalization slipped to 19.14 trillion pesos from 19.83 trillion pesos. Average daily trading value pulled back as well, settling near 8.12 billion pesos.
At the moment, one clear risk stands out: a rebound in energy prices could feed into food and transport, pinning inflation higher and narrowing options for cutting rates. That spells trouble for rate-sensitive stocks, which would feel the most pressure, while overseas investors could remain cautious. Quick rallies sometimes emerge when geopolitical tensions cool, but those gains have been short-lived.
Positioning snapshot: On March 6, the PSE’s daily short selling report showed zero short sales. Without any short trades, traders aren’t making fresh downside bets through that channel.
