Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said the peso outperformed most Asian currencies this year.
Diokno said during the Development Budget Coordinating Committee’s online briefing at the Senate on Wednesday the peso appreciated by 4.14 percent against the US dollar to close at 48.62 on Sept. 4 from the end-December 2019 closing rate of 50.64 a dollar. The local currency settled at 48.66 against the greenback on September 9.
“Thus far, the peso has outperformed other regional currencies. Among the monitored Asian currencies, the Philippines appreciated the most followed by the Japanese yen, Taiwan dollar and Chinese yuan,” Diokno said.
He said the stability of the peso-dollar market was due to the country’s ample gross international reserves and favorable external debt position. As of end-July, the country’s foreign exchange reserves reached $98 billion, the highest on record.
