Peso rebounds from near historic low, closes at P61.625:$1

The Philippine peso gained footing against the US dollar on Thursday, rebounding from a near historic low level the day before.

The local currency gained 12 centavos to close at P61.625:$1 from Wednesday’s finish of P61.745:$1.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort attributed the peso’s recovery to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) caution “against using foreign-exchange derivatives transactions to profit from currency volatility.”

“It is worth noting that the peso exchange rate was relatively stable versus the US dollar recently amid possible intervention/smoothening of market volatility at P61.60-P61.70 levels recently; possible BSP rate hike/s, even off-cycle, to help stabilize the peso exchange rate, importation costs, and, in turn, also better manage inflation and inflation expectations,” Ricafort said.

The economist also cited other “positive factors” for the peso exchange rate such as the seasonal increase in overseas Filipino workers’ (OFWs) remittances and conversion to pesos to finance some tuition payments especially into June 2026 for the new local school year. — JMA, GMA News