The peso on Tuesday further weakened to a fresh almost 11-year low against the US dollar, sliding to 51.34:$1 from 51.08:$1 last Monday.

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It was the weakest close since Aug. 25, 2006’s 51.38:$1.

At the Philippine Dealing System, the peso reached an intraday low of 51.35:$1 and a high of 51.13:$1 after opening at 51.2:$1.

The total volume traded jumped to $659 million from Monday’s $291.5 million.

“This week, it goes to be seen if risk aversion from geopolitical tensions will push the Philippine peso-US dollar pair to new year-to-date highs as we have tested and broken the pivotal level of 51:$1,” Metrobank Research said in a note to clients.

“Even amid a slew of top-tier economic data, markets may be forced to brush them aside as geopolitical fears take the center stage,” Metrobank Research explained. “With new fiery rhetoric coming out of Washington and North Korea, this week’s Federal Open Market Committee minutes may not hog the spotlight given the increased demand for safe-haven bets such as the US dollar, the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc.”

As such, Metrobank Research cautioned investors to “continue to be wary on volatility this week and expect the [dollar-peso] pair to be easily swayed by surprise headline news.”

“This week, the initial range of 50.7-51.7:$1 should hold,” it added. /atm

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