Roundup: Philippine bourse extends losses despite rise of U.S. equities

The Philippine stock market extended its losses on Tuesday despite the three-digit rise of the U.S. equities.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index tumbled by 0.23 percent or 17.56 points to 7,613.15, while the broader all-share index lost 0.09 percent or 4.06 points to 4,436.98.

Trading volume reached 2.1 billion shares worth 20.32 billion Philippine peso (460.25 million U.S. dollars) with 83 advancers, 84 decliners, and 47 were unchanged.

Of the six counters, only the financials and the mining and oil sector bucked the trend. Share prices of oil companies rallied following an increase in oil prices in the global market.

"After the local market paused amid a regional-wide decline in the previous session, optimism may once again pick up as the Philippines' growth story remains intact," said online brokerage 2TradeAsia.com.

The two-day drop provided investors a good buying window on some battered stocks.

The online brokerage noted that despite the extended profit taking, short-term bargains can still be spotted, even as prices recovered at the end of the session.

"Over the medium term, bullish bets may still persists until the first quarter results confirm that buying was not overdone," it said.

Stocks in the 30-company index closed mixed. Among those picked up were heavyweight Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., the Bank of the Philippine Islands, and Megaworld Corp. Endi