Momentum has slowly returned and whether it will continue may be decided by the end of the week.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) showed precautionary measures that investors took the start of the week prior to the release of economic numbers this week.

The bellwether PSEi slipped 2.08 points to close at 7,817.31, 0.03 percent lower than Friday’s 7,819.39. The broader All Shares Index shed 0.17 percent to end at 4,660.44 points.

Regina Capital’s Luis Limlingan saw the market to reclaim its momentum as the economic numbers are to be released from 7 to 9 August.

“Momentum has slowly returned and whether it will continue may be decided by the end of the week,” Limlingan said in a message to the Daily Tribune, citing the US stocks upswing during last Friday’s market close.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 136.42 points on Friday to end at 25,462.58 points while the New York Stock Exchange closed last week at 0.43 percent higher at 12,953.34.

Back at home, holding firms took most of the battering to end Monday losing 0.77 percent at 7,789.55, while service companies were down 0.14 percent at 1,502.80. Property sector, on the other hand, gained 0.89 percent to climb at 3,802.55.

“B” shares of the ATN Holdings were the market’s biggest gainer, up by 12.50 percent at P1.35 per share. Transpacific Broadband Group, Inc. (TBGI) shares also went up in double figures at 11.11 percent to close at P0.7 per stock. Some 90 more listed firms gained in the recent close.

News outfit Manila Bulletin saw it shares down 8.6 percent to lead all 117 decliners at P0.425 per share. Oil firm The Philodrill Corporation end up 8.33 percent lower at P0.011 per stock. At least 36 issues however stay unchanged for Monday.

A total of 2.069 billion shares were traded amounting to almost P5.6 billion in total value. TBGI’s shares were the most actively traded, amounting to P562 million in value. Realty giant Ayala Land, Inc. followed with P392 million and “A” shares of ATN Holdings were traded with P331 million worth of total value.