Presidential son and Ilocos Norte Rep. Sandro Marcos was only “partially correct” when he attributed the peso’s weakness to a strong US dollar, former socioeconomic planning secretary Winnie Monsod said.
In a series of tweets, the University of the Philippines economics professor said certain economic policies are also to blame for the peso’s depreciation.
“If Sandro Marcos meant that the peso depreciation was WHOLLY because of the dollar appreciation, he is only partially correct. He is wrong because he attributes the weakness of the peso to something we cannot control, i.e., the monetary policy of the US. But we can control our trade deficit,” Monsod said.
“Make our exports more attractive (and imports less attractive) so WE get the benefit of the strong dollar,” she added. “If it helps, I’m trying a short video to show how I’d explain this to my students.”
Sandro, who graduated with a master’s degree in development studies from the London School of Economics, caused a stir online when he remarked in an interview that “the peso is weak because the dollar is strong.”
TRADE DEFICIT: make our exports more attractive (and imports less attractive) so WE get the benefit of the strong dollar.
p.s. If it helps, I'm trying a short video to show how I'd explain this to my students.— Solita C Monsod (@MWinnieMonsod) October 13, 2022
