President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is "closely monitoring" the weakening of the peso against the US dollar as he is "in constant touch" with his economic team, Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles said Tuesday, Sep. 27.

Cruz-Angeles made the assurance although she said the President was not able to raise with his Cabinet members in their Tuesday's meeting the new record low for the peso, which closed at P58.50 against the dollar on Sep 23.

With the looming price increase of basic necessities in the market, the Press Secretary also rejected the view that the inflation was caused by "any local factors."

"It's really about the exchange rate. But it is a matter which the President closely monitors on a regular basis," she told reporters in a press briefing.

Meanwhile, Cruz-Angeles believed that the country's economic fundamentals are still "strong" despite the International Monetary Fund's cutting down of the Philippine's growth forecast for 2022, from 6.7 percent to only 6.5 percent.

"The economy is in good resurgence, and we are experiencing a good rate of growth right now. So we will have to see in the end whether that forecast is going to be more accurate than the local forecast," she said.

"Our economic managers forecast a higher growth, so they are in a much better position to make that determination and that forecast," she added.