The Philippine peso strengthened against the US dollar on Friday, returning to the 57-level, while local stocks declined.

The peso closed at 57.83 to the dollar, improving from Thursday’s 58.06 finish. This marked the first time since January 2 that the peso reached the 57-level, when it ended at 57.78.

The currency opened at 57.95 and traded between 57.81 and 57.96, with a daily average of 57.89. Trading volume increased to USD1.66 billion from the previous day’s USD1.64 billion.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 0.85 percent to 6,061.33, while the All Shares index declined by 0.51 percent to 3,629.28.

“Philippine shares fell below the 6,100 mark as investors took profits after two days of gains, following the BSP’s (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) decision to keep interest rates steady,” said Luis Limlingan, head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corp. “Selling pressure emerged as traders reassessed their positions amid a stable policy outlook.”

All sectors ended in negative territory except for Mining and Oil, with Property leading the losses, down by 1.89 percent.

Market breadth was slightly positive, with 82 gainers edging out 81 decliners, while 69 stocks remained unchanged.