BAP to implement shortened forex trading hours starting March 17

Foreign exchange trading at the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) would be shortened to a total of four hours starting Tuesday, March 17.

According to the BAP, it would shorten trading to last from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

"In view of the strict Community Quarantine and curfew set in Metro Manila and nearby cities and municipalities to mitigate the widespread of COVID-19, shortened FX hours shall be observed," it said in an emailed advisory.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE

President Rodrigo Duterte had ordered a community quarantine on Metro Manila,  preventing the entry and exit of non-essential travel to and from the National Capital Region from March 15 to April 14.

Over a hundred COVID-19 cases have already been confirmed in the Philippines, nearly 40 percent of which had no exposure to known infected cases. — DVM, GMA News