Peso seen remaining among Asia’s most vulnerable
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HE Philippine peso may remain one of Asia’s most vulnerable currencies, further depreciating to P62 against the dollar in the remaining second quarter, exacerbated by the war in the Middle East. According to Mitsubishi UFG (MUFG) Research, the local currency will continue to weaken, but will recover in the latter part of the second half of 2026. The peso is seen to trade between
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P60.50 and P61.50 if the Middle East war and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz will unwind by the end of May, MUFG said. The peso hit a new record low at P61.3 per dollar last April 29, from its previous finish of P60.71. “[The] Peso likely suffers from second-round effect on domestic prices, and potential tighter financial condition and associated weaker growth profile,” MUFG said. But if the Strait of Hormuz re-
mains blocked for a prolonged period, MUFG said Asian economies could face recessions as massive capital outflows may occur. The worst-case scenario would be a broad-based depreciation among Asian currencies, with the peso weakening more than 5 percent. “The Philippines is vulnerable not only because of its’s high dependence on the Middle East’ crude oil, but also the weak starting point of growth pre-dating the
Iran War,” MUFG said. The economy grew slower-thanexpected at 4.4 percent in 2025, below the government’s target of 5.5 to 6.5 percent, dragged by infrastructure delays, global uncertainties and severe weather disruptions. “In addition, domestic inflation pressures and the spillover effects have been much larger than we anticipated,” MUFG said, noting that inflation “spiked dramatically” to See “Peso,” A2
BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business
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Q1 N.G. DEBT PAYMENTS DOUBLE TO ₱737.405B www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Monday, May 11, 2026 Vol. 21 No. 209
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 18 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
EBT payments of the government doubled to P737.405 billion in the first quarter of the year, driven by a 4.5-fold increase in amortization.
Latest figures from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed that the government’s debt payments surged by 115.60 percent to P737.405 billion as of end-March from P342.023 billion in the same period last year. This came after amortization, or the repayment of loan principal, climbed by 359.57 percent year-on-year to P464.274 billion from P101.022 billion. In particular, domestic amortization grew by a staggering 67,041 percent to P386.735 billion from merely P576 million in the same period a year ago. There were some P232 billion in seven-year Treasury bonds (Tbonds) that matured last Febru-
ary 14, which caused principal repayments to rise. External amortization, meanwhile, eased by 22.80 percent to P77.539 billion as of end-March from P100.446 billion a year ago. On the other hand, interest payments grew by 13.33 percent year-on-year to P273.131 billion in the first quarter from P241.001 billion. Bulk of the interest payments were shelled out to local lenders, who were paid a total of P211.391 billion as of end-March. This was 18.38 percent higher than the P178.562 billion that the government settled in the same period a year ago. See “Debt,” A2
‘CALIBRATED RE-ENGAGEMENT’ TO BREAK MYANMAR DEADLOCK? By Malou Talosig-Bartolome
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APU-LAPU CITY—Thailand proposed a strategy of “calibrated re-engagement” with Myanmar during the 48th Asean Summit here in Cebu, sparking what diplomats described as a vibrant and even emotional debate among Southeast Asian leaders. The initiative, advanced by Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow, calls for Asean to engage Myanmar more directly in informal settings—such as sideline or virtual meetings—to hear updates on the junta’s political roadmap while pressing concerns over continuing violence and humanitarian distress.
AFFECTIVE ECONOMY A mother kisses her daughter during a Mother’s Day celebration at a mall in Laguna, as families turned retail spaces into moments of togetherness and shared experience.
The scene aligns with Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Q1 2026 data showing household final consumption expenditure rising 3.0 percent year-on-year, alongside growth in wholesale and retail trade at 4.6 percent and services at 4.5 percent. Despite a broader slowdown in overall GDP growth to 2.8 percent and a contraction in investment spending, consumer-led demand continues to support retail resilience—reinforcing malls’ role as key social and commercial spaces where spending is increasingly anchored on experiences, occasions, and family-centered celebrations like Mother’s Day. NONIE REYES
Deputy Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maratee Nalita Andamo explained that the proposal was “for engagement at the political level...and it was the start of a discussion.” She added that the idea had been received “in a positive light,” signaling cautious openness among Asean leaders to explore new methods of dialogue. Since the military coup in 2020, Asean has barred junta leader‑turned‑president Min Aung Hlaing and his ministers from attending summits and ministerial meetings, a sanction that underscores the bloc’s frustration with Naypyidaw’s lack of progress on the
PHL imposing SSG on 4 agri products By Ada Pelonia
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@adapelonia
HE Philippines will impose special safeguard (SSG) duties on four agricultural products that were previously not covered by the trade measure, including onions and meat offals. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. signed Department Order (DO) 15, requesting Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno through Finance Secretary Frederick Go to enforce price-based
See “Myanmar,” A2
SSG on certain farm goods. Under DO 15, additional agricultural products to be imposed with SSG are other meat and edible meat offal, except freeze-dried diced chicken and dried pork skin; fresh or chilled onion other than bulbs for propagation. Other prepared and preserved meat, meat offal, blood of turkeys except mechanically deboned or separated meat; and other prepared and preserved meat, meat offal, blood other than those of turkey and chicken are also included.
The DA issued the order after its monitoring showed that the actual cost, insurance, and freight (CIF) prices for these agricultural products have breached their respective price thresholds. This warrants legal authority to impose price-based SSG duties on these products. The respective trigger prices for the mentioned commodities are as follows: other meat and edible meat offal except freeze-dried diced chicken and dried pork skin, P70.5 per kilo; fresh or chilled onion, P74.21 per kilo.
Furthermore, trigger prices for other prepared and preserved meat, meat other offal, blood of turkeys of than mechanically deboned or separated meat, P259.22 per kilo; other prepared and preserved meat, meat offal, blood, other than of turkey and chicken, P298.55 per kilo. “Price-based SSG measures to be imposed shall be on a shipment-by-shipment basis, depending on the difference between the actual CIF price at the time of lodgment of import documents See “SSG,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 60.6910 n JAPAN 0.3870 n UK 82.2667 n HK 7.7492 n CHINA 8.9162 n SINGAPORE 47.8447 n AUSTRALIA 43.7279 n EU 71.1663 n KOREA 0.0416 n SAUDI ARABIA 16.1808 Source: BSP (May 8, 2026) TEAM GENERAL CLASSIFICATION TOP 3
STAGE 11 May 10, 2026 (Sunday)
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