Peso and stocks down before SONA

Manila, Philippines – Financial markets were offbeat on Monday as trading ended just before President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. delivered his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Stocks dropped by half a percentage point to start the week in the red. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) settled at 6,379.75. The peso stayed within the P57-per-dollar range, extending losses for a second session.

The local currency’s performance mirrored the dollar’s strength elsewhere. The greenback was up 0.15% on the yen at 147.83, while the pound was down 0.13% at $1.3428.

Investors will digest Marcos’ July 28 SONA when trade resumes on Tuesday. In his speech, the president issued a stern warning against rigged public works contracts responsible for persistent flooding, while promising more social safety nets for the poor.

As concerns about the economic fallout from US President Donald Trump’s punishing tariffs subside, investor attention is shifting to corporate earnings and central bank meetings in the United States and Japan in the next few days.

Both the Fed and the Bank of Japan are expected to hold rates steady at policy meetings this week, but traders will watch subsequent comments to gauge the timing of the next moves.

Investors will also be watching to see Trump's reaction to the Fed's decision.

The US president has been putting the Fed under heavy pressure to make significant rate cuts, and Trump appeared close to trying to fire Fed Chairman Jerome Powell last week, but backed off with a nod to the market disruption that would likely follow. – with Reuters