Peso appreciates for 5th straight trading day

The Philippine peso continued to appreciate against the greenback on Thursday, to extend its winning streak for the fifth straight session.

The local currency gained 1.5 centavos to close at P48.115:$1 versus Wednesday's finish of P48.13:$1.

ING Bank Manila senior economist Nicholas Mapa attributed Thursday's appreciation to the improvements in trade data, indicating a better economic picture.

"PHP continues to match stronger even as foreign investors pulled out from the local stock market with the Dollar generally weaker against most regional currencies. The Peso is also benefiting from a relatively smaller trade deficit as imports implode significantly, a reflection of an economy in recession and slowing considerably," he said in an email exchange.

Latest data available from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) shows that imports fell 16.5% year-on-year to $7.924 billion in September while exports rose 2.2% to $6.216.33 billion, bringing the trade gap to $1.707 billion.

"Given the outlook for both the Dollar and import demand (based on the PHL growth trajectory) we can expect some near term appreciation for the local unit to close out the year especially if OF remittances find a way to the Philippines amidst lockdowns across the globe," added Mapa.

Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that remittances grew 9.3% to $2.601 billion in September from $2.379 billion the same month last year.—AOL, GMA News