Analysts see the main index to continue moving sideways with a downward bias this week as fears of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic continue to linger in the market.

AAA Equities sees the local market moving sideways with a negative bias as investors “lack optimism and have moved to the sidelines.”

“Aside from the steady increase in new coronavirus cases, investors are also monitoring the current business environment,” it explained.

AAA Equities added that one of investors’ biggest concerns is the lack of spending by the public, as the economy is consumer-based and relies on strong consumer demand and spending.

“Although most businesses are fully operational and most have gone back to work, spending remains low because of restrictive social distancing measures. The uncertainty of the economic environment in the coming months has encouraged saving instead of spending,” AAA Equities further said.

It expects the market to test the 5,950 support for the week.

Meanwhile, Philstocks Financial Inc. research associate Piper Chaucer Tan said the market might experience a slight rally as it has been pulled down to its support level of 6,000.

Last week, the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) shed 0.96 percent or 58.91 points to finish at 6,088.75 amid the rise in Covid-19 cases in the country.

Tan added, however, that the rally would not be sustained because of the “descending triangle” pattern of PSEi, which shows a bearish investors’ sentiment.

He said the primary contributor to the slowdown is the continuous rise in Covid-19 global pandemic cases in the country.

The Philippines reported 67,456 Covid-19 cases on Sunday, with 22,465 recoveries and 1,831 fatalities.

Tan also noted foreign fund flow has been on the exits, with a 20-day average still on a selling pressure at -P525.73 million and a week-to-date average of -P745 million.

“[This is] a strong indication that the foreign funds are still not confident in our market,” he said.

Tan sees the market moving around the 6,000 to 6,300 levels for the week.

Regina Capital Development Corp. Managing Director Luis Limlingan, on the other hand, said the market would be “tracking developments on the virus spread, US-Sino (China) tensions and reacting to any possible earnings that may be coming out soon.”