(Bloomberg) -- Philippine stocks fell the most in Asia on Friday as the jobless rate jumped to a record while a stimulus bill to soften the pandemic's blow on the economy has yet to pass with congress set to adjourn.
“The possibility that the stimulus bill will not see the light of day and the record unemployment jolted the market back to reality,” said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at BDO Unibank Inc. “Risk on themes are still at risk.”
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index closed 0.8% lower after falling as much as 3.3%, its sharpest intraday loss in over a month. Before Friday, it recorded its steepest seven-day rally since 1998 on bets the recession will not be as severe as feared coronavirus restrictions are eased.
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An 18.6% seven-day rally to Thursday pushed the stock index's 14-day RSI up to 77, the highest in a year and exceeding the 70 score that signals overbought levels and prices are about to fall.
Fifteen of the gauge's 30 components declined with International Container Terminal Services Inc. falling 5.3% after soaring more than 10% on Thursday. SM Investments Corp. and unit SM Prime Holding Inc. contributed most to the index losses.
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