Peso drops vs the dollar on weaker-than-expected China GDP growth

THE PESO weakened versus the greenback on Monday due to cautious sentiment as China’s growth came in slower than expected.

The local unit closed at P50.84 per dollar on Monday, weaker by 12.9 centavos from its P50.711 finish on Friday, based on data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The peso opened Monday’s session at P50.73 per dollar. Its weakest showing was at P50.89, while its intraday best was at P50.72 against the greenback.

Dollars traded slipped to $829.49 million on Monday from $957.74 million on Friday.

The peso depreciated from its previous close after the release of data showing China logged weak economic growth in the third quarter.

China’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4.9% in the July-September quarter from a year earlier, its weakest pace since the third quarter of 2020, Reuters reported on Monday.

The world’s second-largest economy is grappling with power shortages, supply bottlenecks, sporadic coronavirus outbreaks and debt problems in its property sector.

Meanwhile, a trader said the peso weakened on market preference for the dollar after an unexpectedly strong US retail sales report.

The US Commerce department reported on Friday that retail sales rose 0.7% in September following the 0.9% in August. Last month’s print was stronger than the 0.2% forecasted by economists polled by Reuters.

The US dollar headed back on Monday towards a one-year high hit last week as rising inflation expectations and higher bond yields boosted its appeal against its rivals, Reuters reported.

The dollar index rose 0.1% to 94.02, edging it back toward last week’s one-year high of 94.563 which was the highest level since September 2020.

For Tuesday, Mr. Ricafort gave a forecast range of P50.75 to P50.95, while the trader expects the local unit to move within P50.70 to P50.95. — LWTN with Reuters