BSP's 'more forceful' intervention lifts peso against US dollar
By Derco Rosal
At A Glance
- For the fourth time this week, the peso further appreciated to the ₱56:$1 level on Thursday, Aug. 7, closing at ₱56.97, which was also its intraday high, from Wednesday's ₱57.475 on the back of a new, more forceful intervention from the central bank and a weaker United States (US) dollar against major global currencies.
For the fourth time this week, the peso further appreciated to the ₱56:$1 level on Thursday, Aug. 7, closing at ₱56.97, which was also its intraday high, from Wednesday’s ₱57.475 on the back of a new, more forceful intervention from the central bank and a weaker United States (US) dollar against major global currencies.
The local currency hit an intraday low of ₱57.35 after opening at ₱57.33, according to the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP).
Total trading volume jumped to $2.706 billion from Wednesday’s $2.489 billion.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said the local currency’s appreciation for the fourth time in five trading days comes after the US dollar weakened against major global currencies.
Ricafort also cited the BSP’s “more forceful intervention during periods of extended peso weakness as part of a new strategy, gradually moving away from day-to-day intervention.”
In particular, he said, the BSP introduced a new formula to measure the extent of peso depreciation that would trigger stronger intervention to manage inflation.