Filipinos abroad infected with the coronavirus reached 11,573 on Wednesday, as officials reported six new cases from Asia and the Middle East. 

This was the peso’s strongest performance since it closed at P48.10 per dollar on Oct. 20, 2016, data showed.

The Duterte administration on Tuesday said it is targeting to have 60 to 70 million Filipinos vaccinated against the coronavirus in three to five years, with some 35 million already identified as priority for inoculation. 

Unlike Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and Thailand, the Philippines has rejected bailing out firms brought down to their knees by the pandemic.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the clinical evaluation of the Japanese drug has started on November 20.