President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. pledged that Philippine authorities will do all they can to defend the peso as the currency weakened to a record low this week.
"We will continue to do all that we can to make sure that the value of the peso does not continue to go down," Marcos told reporters in Manila on Wednesday, a day after meeting with central bank and key government officials. "People can take solace in the fact that our policy toward the peso is to continue to defend the peso as hard as we possibly can," he said.
Elevated oil prices are deepening losses across most emerging Asian currencies as nations like the Philippines face soaring import costs. The Philippine peso has slid more than 8% this year, the biggest loser in Asia. "Don't panic," Marcos urged Filipinos. "It is an effect of rising prices of oil, and consequently the rising prices of fuel, and its effect on the economy."
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has repeatedly said it does not target a specific exchange level, and that it intervenes to smooth out volatility. Philippine foreign-exchange reserves fell to $100 billion in September, the lowest level in three years. The peso, which fell to a record low of 64.20 per dollar on Tuesday, was trading at 63.99 on Wednesday.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing