Peso closes at weakest level again of P59 to dollar on Oct. 10

MANILA (UPDATE) - The Philippine peso again closed at its weakest level of P59 to $1 on Oct. 10, according to the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The last time it closed at P59 to a dollar was on Oct. 3.

The strengthening of the US dollar has been causing the currencies of other countries to depreciate.

The US Federal Reserve is set to hold another monetary policy-setting meeting in early November, where it is expected to further hike interest rates in an effort to tame inflation.

Analysts have said that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas needs to keep pace with the Fed to keep the peso from weakening even further.

Failure to act swiftly to lessen the interest rate differential between the US dollar and the Philippine peso could weaken the local currency further, BDO Capital President Ed Francisco earlier said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas may be prompted to implement another off-cycle hike since its own policy meeting on Nov. 17 is a few weeks behind the US Fed, Francisco said.

• Peso sinks to new record low, closes at P59 to $1 on Oct. 3

The National Economic and Development Authority and several analysts are betting on the seasonal increase in remittances to boost the peso in the remaining months of the year.

Editor's Note:
An earlier version of this story said the peso briefly touched 59.98 to the dollar in intraday trading. This figure came from the Bankers Association of the Philippines' website. The BAP has since revised this intraday figure to P59. We regret the error.

• Gov't bets on holiday remittances, 'pamasko' to stabilize peso

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