PSEi Plunges Over 3.6% as COVID-19 Cases Surge

Philippine shares fell sharply on Friday due to rising COVID-19 cases and concerns over the Delta variant.

The benchmark PSEi dropped by 3.61%, closing at 6,320.19 points, while the All Shares index declined by 2.04% to 3,976.94 points.

Investor sentiment was dampened by a surge in daily cases and the detection of more infections with the Delta variant.

The Department of Health reported 13,177 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Friday, pushing active cases to 96,395.

Analysts noted that concerns over potential extensions of quarantine measures beyond August 20 contributed to market weakness.