Dubai: The US dollar has increased sharply in value against other foreign currencies recently, making the UAE dirham more attractive to expatriates looking to boost remittances.

For the first time in years, the Philippine peso (Php) breached the 13 to Dh1 level on Friday, while the Indian rupee (INR) has been on a downward trend against the UAE currency.

As of Tuesday, the exchange rates stood at Php13.06 and INR18.50 for every dirham, according to money transfer operator UAE Exchange.

The rising value of the dollar, to which the UAE currency is pegged, is a boon to remitting expatriates in the UAE. A higher dollar means UAE expatriates get to send home more rupees, pesos or euros with their hard-earned dirham.

As of the third week of January, the Indian rupee posted a 10 per cent decline against the US dollar compared to a year earlier. The Philippine peso also dipped by 9 per cent, while the euro dropped by 7 per cent.

A top official at UAE Exchange said that now may be a good time for remitters to take advantage of the favourable exchange rates. It is not clear how high the US dollar will go this year, but there are indications that there will be further value appreciation.

“Definitely, this is a good time to send money home, especially those in the Asian region. This level of rates for Indian rupee or for other Asian currencies certainly gives a good advantage to the remitter,” Promoth Manghat, CEO of UAE Exchange, told Gulf News.

By Tuesday, however, the greenback inched slightly lower, as investors were wary over the results of the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting. But analysts said the dollar is still poised to strengthen.

“From the current available data, [the US dollar] is poised to appreciate further on improved economic performance of the US, though a range-bound forecast would be difficult,” said Manghat.

Manghat pointed out that the current exchange rates don’t mean that Asian currencies like INR or Philippine peso are depreciating.

“It is not the value of Indian currency, or for that matter other Asian currencies, that is falling, but the dollar is getting stronger. All the macroeconomic factors, coming out of the US, point to a strong dollar bringing pressure on all other currencies,” he said.

“A strong dollar will certainly impact other global currencies even in cases where national economies of countries like India are doing good. For instance, Indian rupee is on a strong wicket now compared to two years ago, but against an appreciating dollar, the currency will continue to take a hit.”

Sudhesh Giriyan, COO of Xpress Money, said that  the Indian rupe has been on a downward trend since May 2014, while the other currencies ilke the Philippine peso and the euro, have also been "highly depreciating" over the past few days.

"If we see this depreciation, in terms of percentages, the value of erosion of these currencies [peso and euro] is higher than the Indian rupee. In fact, the peso has hit its lowest in six to seven years," Giriyan told Gulf News.

With payday only just a few days away and given the favourable exchange rates, remittances from UAE expats are likely to increase by the end of the month.

"We think the current levels are very good to remit money back home," Giriyan said.

"With regard to USD-INR [exchange rate] we had not seen the 67 levels being breached in a very long time. There were predications of the rupeed crossing the 20-mark against the dirham, moving up from the August 2013 all-time peak of 18.85, and such a trend is probable."