Peso continues rally, carves fresh three-year high

The Philippine peso extended its winning streak against the US dollar for the fourth consecutive trading day on Monday, to again mark a fresh three-year high.

The local currency gained 4 centavos to close at P49.01:$1 from last Friday's finish of P49.041:$1. This is the strongest reading of the local unit since closing at P48.95:$1 on November 11, 2016.

According to BDO Unibank Inc. chief market strategist Jonathan Ravelas, Monday's appreciation came as the dollar continued its slump.

"Narrowing trade deficit, still lower oil prices, and the weaker dollar view as global investors take on risk," he said in a mobile message.

The Philippine trade gap stood at $1.303 billion in June, down 50.6% from $2.635 billion the same month last year, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported last week.

Moving forward, Ravelas said, the peso is expected to trade between P49.00 to P49.25 against the US dollar. — BM, GMA News