Peso climbs on hawkish signals from BSP chief
THE PESO strengthened anew against the dollar on Thursday, supported by hawkish signals from the Philippine central bank chief and amid continued market uncertainty due to the Middle East war.
The local unit climbed by 14.5 centavos to close at P59.97 against the greenback from its P60.115 finish on Wednesday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.
The currency opened Thursday stronger at P59.999 per dollar. Its intraday best was at P59.85, while its worst showing was at P60.05.
Dollars traded inched down to $1.71 billion from $1.73 billion on Wednesday.
The peso was supported by hawkish signals from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.
BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr. told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank’s 2026 Spring Meetings in Washington D.C. that the central bank has room to raise rates to temper rising inflation amid the Middle East conflict as they expect government spending to support growth.
Mr. Remolona said that second-round effects may emerge sooner than expected as the global oil price shock is expected to spill over into domestic food and transport costs. In March, elevated oil prices due to the war drove inflation to a near two-year high of 4.1%, faster than the BSP’s 3.1%-3.9% forecast and 2%-4% target for the year.
The Monetary Board last raised rates in October 2023.
“The dollar-peso traded sideways amid market caution as players await developments in the second round of US and Iran’s peace talks,” a trader said in a phone interview.
President Donald J. Trump said the US-Israeli war on Iran was “close to over,” while the White House expressed optimism about a deal, saying more in-person talks would likely take place in Pakistan again, Reuters reported.
For Friday, the trader sees the peso moving between P59.70 and P60.20 per dollar, while Mr. Ricafort expects it to range from P59.85 to P60.10. — Aaron Michael C. Sy
