US Dollar to Philippine Peso Exchange Rate History
The US dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States, the world’s leading international reserve currency, and also its top-traded currency. The official currency of the Philippines, the Philippine peso (PHP), used a ‘guided rate’ from 1970 to 1984, with different rates for imports, exports, and foreign debts.
As the Asian-Pacific region as a whole began to prosper in the mid-80s, the Philippine government restructured its currency from a multi-structured rate to a floating exchange rate. The PHP is widely used in international money transfer, particularly for remittances back to the Philippines. Today, the peso’s exchange rate is based on the peso-US dollar conversion rate and is allowed to float freely against the dollar, with intervention when necessary.
Throughout the history of currency exchange between the US dollar and the Philippine peso, the dollar has traded at a premium to the peso. Since 2000, the exchange rate between the currencies varied between PHP40.4427 and PHP56.2022 to the USD. During this time span, the average USD to PHP exchange rate was PHP48.0140.
Dollar Strong against Philippine Peso in Early 2000s
At the turn of the century, the dollar was poised to gain value against the Philippine currency. The dollar’s exchange rate roughly remained above the PHP mark between January 2001 and May 2002. By year-end 2002 - although the US economy was hampered by a recession brought on by the technology sector crash - the USD to PHP exchange rate had settled strongly in the dollar’s favor, at USD to PHP PHP53.3405.
Through the summer of 2006, even as the US economy struggled to reverse slowing growth rates, lagging employment, and stalled consumer consumption, the dollar traded between PHP51 and PHP52. By the end of 2006, however, the USD dropped below PHP50 for the first time in several years, and finished the year with a USD:PHP conversion rate of PHP49.2947.
As the global recession hit in 2008, led in large part by the subprime mortgage crisis and low employment, the dollar reached its lowest levels against the peso of this century, trading at an exchange rate of PHP40.4427 in February. It rebounded by the end of the year, however, finishing 2008 with an exchange rate of PHP47.7034.
Growth for US and Philippines, 2010 onwards
The US economy began to improve in early 2010, though growth remained slow. The dollar began gaining in value against many of the world’s major currencies, though not against the peso. The Philippines’ economic outlook, along with the other five ASEAN countries, was predicted to return to its pre-crisis growth levels, with its economy expected to grow at 6% in 2010. The peso’s value seemed to reflect this growth, as it began a slow but steady climb against the dollar. By the end of 2013 the conversion rate had again moved in the peso’s favor, with the USD trading at a value of PHP44.0869 after several years of steady growth.
By 2014 it was clear that the US economy was on the mend. Though growth was modest, the markets were on an upward trend, and employment continued to improve, with the unemployment rate nearly at a seven-year low. The Philippine economy was also on an upwards trajectory, with expanded private consumption and investment driving a GDP of 6%. Exports were also recovering, and the country looked to be on track to continue its solid growth that had started in 2010. Recent predictions have 2015 GDP growth for the Philippines at 6.4%.
The dollar’s rise is expected to continue in the medium-term; in early 2015, market analysts predicted that the strong US economic recovery would continue through 2017.
