SHARES WEEKLY OUTLOOK Lower on earnings, political worries

PHILIPPINE shares are expected to trade slightly lower this week on profit-taking as investors turn bearish following last week’s second-quarter GDP data release, the waning effect of corporate earnings, and renewed geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and Russia.

AB Capital Securities Inc.’s Alexander Adrian Tiu said in a weekly market outlook the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) may trudge a downward trail amid worries that the government may not achieve its full-year GDP target of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent given the lower second-quarter GDP growth year-on-year.