Peso moves sideways to slightly strengthen

The peso slightly strengthened on Monday on Cyprus bailout news but pared gains in the afternoon trade after investors cashed in gains. A dollar fetched P40.83 by trade end, barely unchanged from the P40.84 close on Friday. Some $664.944 million changed hands on Monday, down from $865.6 in the previous trading day. “The peso marginally moved today, but opened today stronger on talks of bailout deal on Cyprus,” a trader said. But the trader said profit-taking ensued in the afternoon session. “So, what happened today is buy [pesos] on rumors, sell on fact story,” he noted. Cyprus skirted a default by agreeing to a package that will shrink its banking system in exchange for a €10 billion bailout. The Mediterranean island nation agreed to wind down its second-largest bank, Cyprus Popular Bank, and inflict heavy losses on uninsured depositors, including wealthy Russians, in exchange of a bailout to avert a financial collapse, Reuters reported. The trader expects the peso to move within the 40.75 to 40.85 per dollar band. — KBK, GMA News