Manila, Sept. 8 -- The Philippine peso is hovering at historic lows in recent days-nearing PHP63 against the U.S. dollar - as persistent geopolitical risks and domestic economic challenges continue to drive down the value of our local currency.

While currency fluctuations are normal, the peso's persistent slide magnifies deeper structural weaknesses in our economy, particularly our continued heavy dependence on imports and the underdevelopment or sluggish development of local industries.

For the Filipino consumer, the depreciation of the peso against the greenback is expected to hurt pockets further, as it increases the cost of bringing in goods from overseas and puts upward pressure on domestic consumer prices.

For example, oil compan...