Peso strongest in 4 months, backs local index

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine peso closed Tuesday with its strongest finish in nearly four months, bouncing back to the 56 level to the US dollar.

The peso finished at 56.96 against the US dollar, gaining by 0.36 from Monday’s closing of 57.32 to the greenback.

The local currency kicked off at 57.25 before trading from a low of 56.92 to a high of 57.30.

READ: Peso slides to 58 to $1

The average level for the day stood at 57.14 to a dollar.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the peso was at its strongest since April 15, 2024 when it closed at 56.81 to a dollar.

“A good sign that the peso further appreciated recently from familiar ranges—a good signal for the financial markets and for the overall economy,” Ricafort added.

The currency pair is projected to trade between 56.85 and 57.05 range on Wednesday.

The volume of trade increased to US$1.8 billion from US$1.18 billion the previous day.

READ: Peso moves ever closer to record low

The stronger peso also provided a positive sentiment to investors in Tuesday’s trading as the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) bounced back by 0.56 percent to 6,650.44.

All Shares also improved by 0.32 percent to 3,610.00.

Only Mining and Oil, as well as Financials, ended in the red territory, shedding by 1.09 and 0.18 percent, respectively.

Winners included Property (+1.69 percent), Industrial (+0.56 percent), Holding Firms (+0.44 percent), and Services (+0.37 percent).

However, decliners still outpaced advancers at 100 to 81, with 64 counters left unchanged.

“The peso’s strengthening against the US dollar has helped in lifting the market. Investors’ appreciation of second quarter/first half corporate results also helped in bringing the market up,” Philstocks Financial Inc. senior research analyst Japhet Tantiangco said.