PHL April exports fall 4.1% to $4.37B – PSA

Published June 10, 2015 10:47am

(Updated 1:06 p.m.) Philippine exports contracted by 4.1 percent to $4.376 billion in April from $4.563 billion a year earlier, as shipments of eight of the top 10 major commodities declined, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Wednesday.

This development followed a modest rebound of 2.1 percent in March and was due to lower revenues from petroleum, mineral and agro-based products, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said in a separate report.

Only coconut oil and electronic products registered significant gains out of the top 10 products, PSA data showed. Coconut oil shipments grew by 30.3 percent and electronic products by 17.8 percent.

“The decline is partly reflective of the fragile global economic conditions, as most trade-oriented economies in East and Southeast Asia also registered negative export performance in April 2015, with only Vietnam in positive territory. Weaker demand conditions in some of our major trading partners, particularly China, were seen,” said Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan.

Shipments of other mineral products declined by 36.8 percent, other manufactures by 26.7 percent, woodcrafts and furniture by 23.9 percent, and metal components by 14.5.

“Falling crude oil prices in the international market continue to partly affect the country’s exports as reflected in the year-on-year declines in the volume of petroleum exports to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia,” Balisacan said.

Also registering lower shipments were chemicals, down 10.2 percent; ignition wiring set and other wiring sets used in vehicles, aircrafts and ships, dropped 7.9 percent; articles of apparel and clothing accessories contracted by 4.9 percent; and machinery and transport equipment shriveled by 4.4 percent.

Agro-based products

"Combined merchandise exports for the four-month period of 2015 registered a 1.2 percent decrease that is from $18.840 billion in 2014 to $18.623 billion in same period of 2015," the PSA said.

Also, total exports revenue from agro-based products dropped by 33.1 percent to US$231.0 million in April 2015 from US$345.0 million in April 2014 as sharp contractions were recorded in fruits & vegetables.

“The production of agro-based commodities will continue to feel the impact of prolonged drought in tandem with the occurrence of stronger and erratic typhoons. This will ultimately affect production,” said Balisacan, who is also the NEDA Director-General.

He emphasized the need for government to fast-track and strengthen initiatives, like infrastructure support, hybrid seeds and advanced weather sensing facilities to lessen the impact of extreme weather conditions on agriculture.

“These initiatives, if undertaken, will help stabilize supply of exported agro-based commodities and provide steady income for workers in agriculture,” the Cabinet official noted.

The Philippine export sector remains vulnerable to declining demand from major trading partners. The softening of economic activity in China as well as the still fragile economic growth of Japan remains a downside risk for the sector, according to the NEDA.

“To counter the weak demand from our major markets, the government should maximize existing trade agreements, especially with emerging economies benefitting from the low oil price environment. Also, this shows the importance of restoring traction in government spending,” said Balisacan.

Top buyers

Among the top five buyers of Philippine merchandise, Japan including Okinawa remained at the top with receipts amounting to $784.90 million, comprising a 17.9-percent share to total exports for April.

However, the value of shipments to Japan dropped 16.1 percent from $935.29 million on-year.

The US – including Alaska and Hawaii – ranked second, accounting for 16.0 percent of the total exports, with receipts valued at $700.21 million.

Receipts from the US were down 5.4 percent from $740.01 million in same month last year.

The People’s Republic of China was the third largest buy of Philippine exports, with a 10.7-percent share of the total exports, with shipments valued at $467.67 million – down 17.9 percent from $569.53 million.

Hong Kong ranked fourth with $451.07 million or 10.3 percent share of the total exports, up 22.8 percent from $367.23 million.

Singapore placed fifth, representing a 5.9 percent share of the total exports and receipts worth $260.16 million. It contracted by 33.2 percent from $389.26 million.

The other buyers that account for the top 10 destinations of Philippine exports were Republic of Korea, $229.55 million; Germany, $202.49 million; Taiwan, $159.37 million; Thailand, $148.41 million; and the Netherlands, $125.43 million.

The total receipts from the top 10 buyers of Philippine goods were valued at $3.529 billion or 80.6 percent of the total shipments. – VS, GMA News

Tags: phlexports, exports, psaexports