President Aquino said on Wednesday the peso’s retreat to the P44 level against the US dollar the day before is still within “tolerable range” as far as the government is concerned but cited uncertainties elsewhere in the world that may impact on the Philippine economy despite its “solid” economic fundamentals.

“All investors, all financial managers are in a situation where the landscape remains uncertain. So nervousness affects not only the Philippines but the entire world,” the President said.

He said the Philippines is only being affected by these external developments indirectly.

“Damay lang tayo dito. It doesn’t reflect on our own financial conditions, our fiscal policies. All of us are saying that the economic fundamentals are still very solid as far as we are concerned but we are not in a vacuum,” Mr. Aquino said.

The peso strengthened 0.5 percent to 43.868 per dollar on Wednesday after falling to an eight-month low of 44.215 on Tuesday.

“We remain positive on the Philippine peso amidst the recent government’s strategy to bring forward some of the 2012 infrastructure spending to boost second-half growth and the resilient domestic spending engine in supporting the economic growth,” Malayan Banking Bhd. analysts led by Saktiandi Supaat, head of foreign-exchange research in Singapore, said in a report on Wednesday.