Peso up on stock market’s gains, decline in infections

THE PESO strengthened versus the greenback on Wednesday following gains in the stock market and the continued decline in coronavirus infections.

The local unit ended trading at P50.34 per dollar on Wednesday, appreciating by 25 centavos from its P50.59 close on Tuesday, based on data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The peso opened Wednesdays session stronger versus its previous finish at P50.57 per dollar. Its weakest showing was at P50.62, while its intraday best was at its close of P50.34 against the greenback.

Dollars exchanged dropped to $909.4 million from $1.24 billion on Tuesday.

The peso appreciated as the stock market posted gains, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index rose by 17.94 points or 0.24% to end trading at 7,419.10 on Wednesday.

However, the broader all shares index dropped by 2.10 points or 0.05% to close at 3,935.54.

Meanwhile, a trader said the decline in infections also boosted market sentiment.

Active cases increased by 890 to 17,864 on Wednesday, based on data from the Department of Health. This represents a positivity rate of just 0.6%.

For Thursday, both Mr. Ricafort and the trader gave a forecast range of P50.25 to P50.45 per dollar.