Economist-congressman Joey Salceda doesn't see anything wrong with Ilocos Norte 1st district Rep. Sandro Marcos's statement wherein the latter says the Philippine peso isn't weak, per se.
"The fact that there is even controversy about Rep. Sandro’s remarks reflects what some quarters would do just to make an issue," said Salceda, who represents Albay's 2nd district.
"And in these remarks, I don’t see any major issue, anyway," he added.
Salceda, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, was referring to Marcos's assessment on the foreign exchange rate wherein the Ilocano said, "The peso is not weak because the peso is weak. The peso is weak because the dollar is strong."
The presidential son and House senior deputy majority leader gave this comment even as the peso was moving toward the P59-level against the United States (US) dollar.
"The peso is actually stronger now against major global currencies like the Euro, the Yen, or the Pound than it used to be last year," Salceda said.
"And, as consensus economics suggests, peripheral economies like the Philippines can’t do much to change the effects of actions by core economies like the United States. We can adapt, but that’s pretty much it," the Bicol solon said,
Salceda also agreed with the Ilocos Norte lawmaker's take that the greenback--during hard times--becomes the go-to currency for stakeholders, thus driving up its demand.
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https://mb.com.ph/2022/10/11/sandro-comments-on-weak-peso-offers-advice-to-pinoys/
"It’s also conventional economics to say that the dollar is viewed as a safe haven when the going gets tough for the global economy," he said.
Marcos, 28, earlier said: “Ang nangyayari ay lahat ng mga tao kapag may krisis ay bumibili ng dollar. Kapag binibili yung dollar, ang demanda ng dollar tumataas (What happens is, whenever there’s a crisis, people purchase dollars. And this results to the rise in then dollar’s demand). Which means, againts other currencies, it becomes stronger."
As a parting shot, Salceda said: "Let’s focus on what we can do to help Filipino families survive this global economic upheaval, and I say that to both the government and its critics."