BPI: Overseas Filipinos can take advantage of strong dollar

THE Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) encourages overseas Filipinos to maximize their dollar earnings by taking advantage of the high peso-dollar rate. "One sector that greatly benefits

from the strong dollar is the overseas Filipinos,” says Ritche Fariñas, head of BPI Retail Banking Group’s Overseas Filipino Segment.

“The higher conversion means their beneficiaries will have more

money to spend. These workers abroad may not get any salary increase, but because of the exchange rate, whatever they send back home is bigger,” he added.

The strong dollar performance is due to higher interest rates in the United States, with the exchange rate hitting a monthly

average of 52.2 peso to a dollar for the month of May.

Contracting remittances have also contributed to the weakening of the peso. Remittances are down by 9.8 percent in March—the lowest in 15 years—according to the BangkoSentralngPilipinas.

Fariñas, however, expressed optimism that remittances will pick up by the end of the year, and that peak cycles in remittances may have shifted because of the change in schools’ academic calendars.

“An overseas worker usually gets his salary and remits it to his family, where it gets converted to peso immediately. The OF can play the for ex market by waiting when the exchange rate is high before remitting and converting to peso,” he said.