Remolona shrugs off peso slide

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is not inclined to mount a forceful defense of the peso despite renewed market pressure and talk of the exchange rate testing the 60-to-the-dollar level, according to BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr.

- - Keisha Ta-asan

On the sidelines of an event hosted by the Rotary Club, Remolona said that while there is strong market pressure to prop up the local currency, the central bank has chosen not to yield to it.

"There is tremendous pressure to defend the peso and we’ve resisted that pressure," he told reporters.

When asked what that means for the BSP, he was blunt: "We ignore that (pressure)."

On Wednesday, the peso slumped by 14.5 centavos to a record low of 59.355 against the dollar. This is weaker than the close recorded on Dec. 9, when the peso reached a previous record low of 59.22 versus the greenback.

Remolona acknowledged that the central bank continues to participate in the market, but only in limited amounts.