THE PESO strengthened against the dollar on Monday after the government said it in unlikely to tighten mobility restrictions further.
The local currency closed at P51.31 per dollar on Monday, four centavos stronger than its P51.35 finish on Friday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines’ website showed.
The peso opened at P51.38 versus the dollar. Its worst showing was at P51.45, while its intraday best was P51.27 against the greenback.
Dollars exchanged fell to $919.22 million on Monday from $1.017 billion on Friday.
Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said the peso strengthened after the government said the capital region is unlikely to be placed under stricter lockdown measures soon.
Market sentiment was also supported by “relatively smaller amount of estimated economic losses of the Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila and other areas,” he said in a Viber message.
Acting Presidential Spokesman and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei B. Nograles on Monday said Metro Manila has not met the metrics that would prompt the stricter Alert Level 4.
The economy would lose P3 billion a week in productivity contributions due to the shift to Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila and nearby regions, the Development Budget Coordination Committee said on Friday.
Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal are under Alert Level 3 until Saturday due to a surge in coronavirus disease 2019 cases.
Mr. Ricafort also said the peso also strengthened in response to reform measures recently passed by the Duterte administration.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte last week signed Republic Act No. 11595, which lowered the minimum paid-up capital for foreign retailers.
He also signed Republic Act No. 11635, which qualifies private schools and nonprofit hospitals for tax relief. — J.P. Ibañez
