Peso retreats to 42-to-dollar level

US dollar (L) and Philippine notes (R). AFP PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The peso weakened back to the 42-to-a-dollar territory on Wednesday amid market concerns over the slowdown of China and the contraction of the eurozone in the second quarter.

The local currency closed at its intraday low of 42.27 against the US dollar, down by 35.5 centavos from the previous day’s finish of 41.915:$1.

Intraday high hit 42.04:$1. Volume of trade amounted to $1.05 billion from $945.3 million previously.

The depreciation of the peso came amid growing concerns that the global economy has been weakening given the slowdown of major economies.

China earlier reported that growth in its gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7.6 percent in the second quarter from a year ago, slower than the 8.1 percent registered in the first quarter and the slowest in about three years.

The eurozone reported Tuesday that its member-economies registered an average contraction of 0.4 percent in the second quarter from a year ago.

China and the eurozone are key export markets for many emerging economies, including the Philippines.

Traders said the slowdown of the two key economic regions of the world fueled risk aversion among fund owners, who opted to liquefy emerging-market assets in favor of the US dollar.