Peso weakens anew before US-Iran negotiations

THE PESO dropped anew against the dollar on Thursday as markets turned cautious while waiting for news on the United States’ talks with Iran.

The local unit weakened by 9.8 centavos to close at P57.608 against the greenback from its P57.51 finish on Wednesday, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines showed.

The peso opened Thursday’s trading session slightly weaker at P57.555 per dollar. Its worst showing for the day was at P57.64, while its intraday high was at P57.47 versus the greenback.

Dollars traded went down to $1.415 billion from $1.768 billion on Wednesday.

“The dollar-peso closed higher but traded mostly sideways due to lack of catalysts. It was a relatively quiet market today amid risk-off sentiment ahead of talks between the Iran and US tonight,” a trader said in a phone interview.

The dollar was generally stronger on Thursday as players await clarity on new tariff rates after the US Supreme Court ruled the previous levies as unconstitutional, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

For Friday, the trader sees the peso moving between P57.40 and P57.70 per dollar, while Mr. Ricafort expects it to range from P57.50 to P57.70.

Iran and the US hold the latest round of talks in Geneva on Thursday aimed at resolving their longstanding nuclear dispute and averting new US strikes on Iran following a large-scale military buildup, Reuters reported.

The two countries renewed negotiations this month, seeking to break a decades-long impasse over Tehran’s nuclear program, which Washington, other Western states and Israel believe is aimed at building nuclear arms. Tehran denies this.

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald J. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, will attend the indirect talks with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, a US official told Reuters. The meeting follows discussions in Geneva last week and will again be mediated by Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi.

Mr. Trump briefly laid out his case for a possible attack on Iran in his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, stressing that while he preferred a diplomatic solution, he would not allow Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon.

He has deployed fighter jets, aircraft carrier strike groups as well as destroyers and cruisers in the region, hoping to pressure Iran into concessions. — Aaron Michael C. Sy with Reuters