Philippine stocks plunge 13%, erase P1.16T

The Philippine stock market experienced a historic plunge on Thursday due to coronavirus-related concerns.

The main-share PSEi dropped by 13.34% or 711.95 points, closing at an eight-year low of 4,623.42 and erasing P1.16 trillion in market value.

Investors rushed to sell stocks upon the reopening of trading after a two-day closure due to the Luzon-wide lockdown.

The circuit breaker was triggered shortly after opening, but since it can only be activated once per day, the index continued its steep decline.

Market experts noted that while there were some gains on Friday, the overall sentiment remained negative with expectations of further economic impacts from the pandemic.