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MANILA - (UPDATED 12:06 p.m.) The Securities and Exchange Commission is looking at trading irregularities in Alcorn Gold Resources Corp., which saw its share price nearly quadruple this month alone.
In a briefing, SEC Commissioner Juanita Cueto said the corporate watchdog has ordered a probe on trading activities in Alcorn, noting the unusual spike in the share price of the company engaged in oil and mineral exploration.
Since closing at P0.018 apiece on September 28, the price of Alcorn shares have risen 283.33 percent to P0.069 apiece on Monday. It fell 18.8 percent to close at P0.056 each on Tuesday.
In response to the Philippine Stock Exchange's queries on the sudden surge in its share price, Alcorn said it has "no knowledge of any reason that could have triggered the unusual price movement."
Alcorn also said it was "not in a position to confirm or clarify" reports for a contemplated backdoor listing.
Lucio Co, which owns publicly-listed retailer Puregold Price Club Inc., sits on the board of Alcorn.
SEC Chairperson Teresita Herbosa said the commission is investigating nine cases on securities law violations such as market manipulation and insider trading.
"The SEC has been investigating a lot of companies. We're receiving a lot of tips, but we don't disclose it because it will probably just disturb the market," said Herbosa.
Herbosa vowed the SEC's Enforcement and Prosecution Department will conclude its stock price manipulation probe on farm output distributor Calata Corp. by end of the month.
In August, the Capital Markets Integrity Corp., the independent market regulatory unit of the PSE, forwarded the SEC the results of its investigation. The government agency may draft a criminal complaint, which will then be submitted to the Department of Justice for action.
The Philippines has yet to convict anyone of insider trading or price manipulation, but a number of cases are pending before the lower courts, the Department of Justice and the SEC, Herbosa said in a previous interview.
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