Peso slips as House suspends session amid row
THE PESO inched down on Wednesday after lawmakers suspended their session earlier than planned amid a speakership row and as the planned US stimulus fund faces another delay.
The local unit closed at P48.39 versus the dollar, losing a centavo from its P48.38 finish on Tuesday.
The peso opened Wednesday’s session sharply weaker at P48.48 per dollar. It sank to as low as P48.50 during the session while its intraday high was logged at P48.38 versus the greenback.
Some $584.4 million changed hands on Wednesday, lower than the $658.2 million seen on Tuesday.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a text message that the peso inched lower after the House of Representatives suspended its session on Tuesday, earlier than the scheduled Oct. 16 suspension, amid a speakership row. Session will resume on Nov. 16.
Ahead of the suspension, the House approved on second reading the national budget for 2021. The early break came ahead of the expected turnover of the House’s speakership on Oct. 14 under a term-sharing agreement.
Mr. Ricafort said the market is worried the early session suspension could delay the approval of priority economic bills.
Meanwhile, a trader said the peso weakened slightly after US President Donald Trump abruptly ended talks with Democrats on an economic aid package on Tuesday.
In his first major policy pronouncement since leaving the hospital, Mr. Trump called off talks with Democratic lawmakers on coronavirus relief legislation until after the election, even as cases are on the rise across much of the country.
Mr. Trump’s tweet breaking off talks for a new round of stimulus spooked Wall Street, sending stocks down as much as 2% from their session highs and tarnishing one of the metrics that the Republican president has touted as a sign of his success, Reuters reported.
Late Tuesday, Mr. Trump in a series of tweets urged Congress to quickly pass $25 billion in funding for passenger airlines, $135 billion for small businesses and provide $1,200 stimulus checks for Americans.
For today, Mr. Ricafort sees the peso moving from P48.35 to P48.45 versus the dollar, while the trader expects it to range from P48.30 to 48.50. — with Reuters
