Peso falls on news of China move to cut growth target

MANILA, Philippines—The peso fell on the first trading day of the week as the move of China to cut its growth target for the year somehow dampened outlook of investors on the performance of the global economy.

The local currency closed at its intraday low of 42.9 against the US dollar, down by 21.5 centavos from Friday’s finish of 42.685:$1.

Intraday high hit 42.73:$1. Volume of trade amounted to $1.058 billion from $1.285 billion previously.

The depreciation of the peso, which came with the decline of other Asian currencies, came after China announced it had cut its economic growth target for this year to 7.5 percent from 8 percent, which had been in place since 2005.

Traders said China’s move was viewed by some investors as an indication that Asia would grow less than initially expected this year.

China is one of the main markets for goods produced by emerging economies like the Philippines.