Peso hits five-month high after Fed chair’s statement

The peso reached its strongest level against the dollar in five months after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen categorically stated that the US central bank must be cautious about raising interest rates.

The local currency gained 32.5 centavos to close at P46.030:$1 from P46.355 Tuesday.

“The dollar weakened against most of its peers after Fed (Chair Janet) Yellen’s dovish testimony last night,” Cherica Vicente, research analyst at MetisEtrade, said in an emailed commentary.

“In her first public remarks since the Federal Reserve took a dovish stance on monetary policy in its February meeting, Yellen reaffirmed a cautiously optimistic outlook for the US economy in remarks prepared for delivery to the Economic Club of New York,” Agence France-Presse said in a report.

Investors took this as a sign that the US economy may not be resilient enough to survive global uncertainties at this point, Vicente noted.

The exchange rate was the highest registered since October 2015, according to a daily market report by BDO Unibank Inc. – Jon Viktor Cabuenas/VDS, GMA News