Manila: The Philippine peso ended the week nearly flat against the US dollar, partly supported by lower global oil prices, while the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) closed in negative territory. The local currency ended trading at 61.59 to the dollar, little changed from Thursday's 61.595. It opened stronger at 61.42, compared to the previous session's opening rate of 61.56. During the day, the peso traded between 61.39 and 61.64, bringing the average exchange rate to 61.50. Trading volume rose to USD1.71 billion from USD1.11 billion in the previous session.

According to Philippines News Agency, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort attributed the peso's performance to several factors, including the decline in global oil prices. He noted that oil prices at the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) fell to a new one-month low of USD88 per barrel from USD90 per barrel in the previous session. Ricafort added that investors also adopted a wait-and-see stance on the proposed US-Iran peace deal, noting that 'a tentative 60-day ceasefire agreement still requires approval by US President Donald Trump, who asked for a couple of days to think about the agreement.'

Meanwhile, the local bourse's main index declined by 1.56 percent to 5,768.76 points, while the broader All Shares index fell by 0.82 percent to 3,280.97 points. Most sectoral indices also closed lower, led by Services, down 3.52 percent; Property, 1.58 percent; Industrial, 1.19 percent; and Holding Firms, 0.85 percent. Financials and Mining and Oil, however, posted gains of 0.98 percent and 0.90 percent, respectively. Trading volume reached 1.92 billion shares valued at PHP26.45 billion. Decliners outnumbered advancers, 106 to 75, while 61 shares were unchanged.