Peso Slide Against Dirham Boosts Value for Filipino Remitters

The Philippine peso weakened to an unprecedented 17 against the UAE dirham and 62.8 against the US dollar earlier this week, according to figures cited by Khaleej Times. The slide has been attributed to a combination of a widening national trade deficit and mounting costs tied to oil imports.

Rising crude prices, driven by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, have added further strain on the Philippine currency. Domestic fuel prices in the country have already climbed by around five pesos per litre in early September 2026 as import costs rose.

Close to one million Filipino workers are based in the UAE, and the corridor between the two countries ranks among the largest remittance channels for the Philippines, alongside flows from the United States and Saudi Arabia. For many of these workers, the peso's depreciation means each dirham transferred now buys noticeably more in pesos than it did previously.

Industry figures quoted by Khaleej Times, including Al Ansari Exchange CEO Ali Al Najjar, noted that customers are increasingly timing their transfers to take advantage of currency swings, with a modest uptick in activity observed along the Philippines corridor as the exchange rate has moved in senders' favour.

Central Bank of the UAE data referenced in the report shows that money leaving the country through exchange houses continues to outpace inbound transfers by a wide margin, underscoring the UAE's position as a major global remittance hub. Outward remittances climbed 27.8 per cent year-on-year in 2025, reaching Dh188.8 billion, according to the Central Bank's Financial Stability Report for that year.

This growth reflects the scale of the UAE's expatriate workforce and the steady flow of earnings sent back to families across South and Southeast Asia, the Philippines among them.

For UAE residents regularly sending funds to the Philippines, currency swings like this one directly affect how much value reaches recipients, even when the amount sent in dirhams stays the same. Exchange rates between the dirham and peso can shift within short windows, so the rate available at the moment of transfer, not just on the day money is set aside, can materially change the outcome.

Anyone converting significant sums across this corridor may find it worthwhile to compare rates and fees across different transfer providers before sending, since both can vary noticeably and affect the final amount received by family or business contacts abroad.