A TOTAL of P1.16 trillion in stock market value was lost as the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) continued its freefall as soon the market reopened Thursday, March 19, after a two-day suspension in trading in line with the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.
The main-share index closed at 4,623.42, down 711.95 points or 13.34 percent. This was the lowest level since January 26, 2012, the exchange said.
“P1.1T in PH stock mkt value wiped out today,” the PSE said in a Twitter post Thursday. The exchange later corrected the amount and said the market lost P1.16 trillion.
Volume turnover was 1.2 billion shares valued at P9.4 billion with foreign selling estimated at P6.7 billion and foreign buying at P4.3 billion.
The circuit breaker rule was triggered again shortly after the market reopened at 9:30 a.m. as the index plunged by 12.4 percent.
The circuit breaker, which halts trading by 15 minutes, is triggered when the index falls by at least 10 percent compared to the previous close.
Trading resumed at 9:45 a.m., with the index further shedding 924.56 points of 17.33 percent.
Losses peaked when the index dived to a new low of 4,039.15, but recovered towards the end of trading.
Trading hours have been shortened, with the market closing two hours earlier at 1 p.m., as part of precautionary measures against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Philippine shares collapsed by as much as 24 percent on Thursday, March 19, 2020, its biggest intraday loss on record as trading resumes from a two-day shutdown.
“This crash is now officially worse than the 2008 recession,” stock analyst Marvin Germo said.
Many of the country’s biggest companies have already taken a hit.
Among the 20 most actively traded stocks Thursday, Jollibee Foods Corporation led the losses as its share prices dropped by 24.71 percent to P91.10 apiece.
Other stocks that lost by more than 20 percent were Ayala Corporation (down 22.75 percent to P394), BDO Unibank Inc. (down 22.73 percent to P85), Bloomberry Resorts Corporation (down 22.14 percent to P4.36), and Ayala Land Inc. which sank by 20.31 percent to P22.95.
Property giant SM Prime Holdings has shut 63 of its 74 shopping malls, with its shares falling 6.14 percent.
All major indices continued to take a hit, with the mining and oil sector posting the biggest loss at 17.74 percent followed by the financials which was down by 15.38 percent.
Trading on Thursday was conducted remotely through offsite locations in compliance with the guidelines set by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).
The task force had also allowed the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corporation, Philippine Depository and Trust Corporation, and the Securities Clearing Corporation of the Philippines (SCCP) to resume operations.
The Philippines was the first country to shut down its financial markets over the Covid-19 pandemic. (MVI/CSL/SunStar Philippines)