Peso sinks to fresh record-low at P62.4 to $1

The Philippine peso dived to a fresh historic low against the US dollar for the third trading day on Tuesday, as the US Federal Reserve's hints provided a boost for the greenback's allure.

The local currency shed 13.5 centavos of its value to close at P62.4:$1, from last Friday's record low of P62.265:$1.

The peso opened the trading day at P62.25:$1.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the local unit's weakness came "after the latest hawkish signals by Fed Chair Kevin Warsh during the yearly Jackson Hole Symposium on August 28, 2026 that resulted in a higher gauge of US dollar versus major global currencies to among two-week highs or since August 18, 2026 and up from near three-month lows."

Nevertheless, Ricafort said the peso's decline was tempered by interventions of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

To recall, BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. earlier said the central bank is managing sharp movements in the peso-dollar exchange rate.

"What we do is to manage the sharp movements in the exchange rate. The exchange rate itself is something very hard to fix for a country like the Philippines. Philippines' exports are insufficient, noting the country's trade deficit. It is difficult to stop the peso's fall. The BSP can slow the peso's depreciation, but it cannot fix the exchange rate; we will run out of reserves," Remolona said.

The peso's weakness also came amid fresh Middle East worries as well as the recent policy rate hike of the BSP.

The central bank decided Thursday to hike policy rates for the third straight meeting, bringing the benchmark policy rate to 5.0%. — VDV, GMA News