Best Posts in Thread: US$ To PhP

all world currencies go up and down relative to each other reflecting a myriad of economic indicators as well as other issues. the changes reflect the relative purchasing power of each currency. trump and duterte probably have an impact but perhaps no more so than other world leaders. my dollars buy more in pesos now, about twenty per cent more , than when i came here in 2014,. if trump and duterte have an impact, trump has been dramatically positive for US citizens here.

you can use this to your advantafe. i keep dollars in a philippine account and then covert as i need pesos but try to do this on an upswing. the long term trend suggests in five years a dollar will be worth about 56 to 58 pesos but its just a guess. the exchange fluctuates on a current basis by one or more pesos to the dollar each month, going up and down daily. it may be a fools game but i try to exchange based on watching for the best current rate

i think the most significant way to help yourself is to look for the best place to exchange dollars for pesos to my knowledge the "x change?" under robinsons downtown has the best rate, better than their sister outlets and better than most banks. by all means avoid exchanging at street corner vendors

you also will make the best of your money if you transfer dollars to the phils, bank account to bank account for little or no cost and then maximize your exchange as noted above. using an ATM for example may involve both a fee and getting nicked on the exchange rate they offer.

 

I think OSO isn't far off, he basically hit it on the head about trump and duterte..

Particularly the peso would be generally about 20% better or more if corruption and killings and petty squabbles were not so rampant in the Philippine government and provincial and municipal administrations. Foreign companies have little desire to deal with the huge amount of corruption, and I think 80% of foreigners refuse to deal with Philippine companies and government agencies above a retail level for that reason, drastically affecting the economy. Unfortunately, the "first families" and influential people won't work to improve the situation, basically sticking to a desire to PMA (protect their own butts) for themselves instead of for the rest of the country..