MANILA, Philippines – Philippine shares fell further into bear market territory on Monday, March 16, as the government struggles to contain the novel coronavirus.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index closed at 5,335, 7.9% lower than the figure on Friday, March 13, as the local bourse began operating under shorter trading hours. (READ: PSE shortens trading hours as Metro Manila goes on lockdown)

“With the number of cases rising, the country has added measures for more social distancing. This however would imply that growth would be cut as establishments would realize less business as a result,” said Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital.

The broader all shares fell by 6.4% to 3,271. All subindices were also in the red, with holding firms bleeding the most by over 10%.

Decliners trumped advancers, 145 to 46, while 40 firms remained unchanged.

Net foreign selling stood at P741 million.

A bear market indicates that shares are trading below 20% from their last all-time high. The threshold, around 6,600, was recently breached.

The circuit breaker or 15-minute trading halt was triggered twice last week, as shares fell by over 10%. – Rappler.com