With the Philippine Peso closing at P51.08 against a dollar today, its lowest in 11 years, Ernesto Pernia, Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), said that it should not be a cause of worry, instead it will boost a pillar of the economy—overseas Filipino workers.
The NEDA chief explained that the weakening peso will be favorable to OFWs in terms of the buying power of their remittance.
“It is going to make our exports more competitive, our OFWs remittances will be a boost to consumption spending which is also an economic driver, economic growth stimulus. It’s also (good) for BPOs (business process outsourcing),” PNA quoted Pernia as saying.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor Espenilla said that the weakening peso is due to nuclear threats between North Korea and the United States; the former is reportedly finalising plans to launch missiles into the waters near Guam, a US territory.
“These are really driven by market forces so there is no really worry. What we need to worry about is wild swings,” PNA quoted Pernia as saying.
“We don’t expect it to do a free fall because our economic fundamentals now, unlike before, are solid and very strong,” Pernia added.
