Philippine trade deficit wider at $3.677 billion in November 2022

The Philippine trade deficit widened in November even as imports contracted while exports posted double-digit growth, government data released on Tuesday showed.

Data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) indicated that the balance of trade in goods (BoT-G) recorded a $3.677-billion deficit in November, wider than the $3.312-billion deficit in October, but narrower than the $4.710-billion deficit the same month in 2021.

Total external trade for the month amounted to $17.878 billion, reflecting a 3.6% increase from $17.257 billion in November 2021, but lower than the $18.734 billion in October.

Of the total external trade, imported goods accounted for 60.3% or $10.777 billion. This is 1.9% lower than the $10.984 billion the previous year, and down from $11.023 billion the previous month.

Four of the 10 major commodity groups recorded declines during the period, led by electronic products which fell by 10.1%. It was followed by transport equipment down 8.8%, cereals and cereal preparation down 5.9%, and industrial machinery and equipment down 3.5%.

These offset growth in other commodity groups such as other food and live animals which increased by 32.0%; iron and steel up 16.7%; mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials up 7.9%; plastics up 5.3%; miscellaneous manufactured articles up 4.3%; and telecommunication equipment up 2.6%.

China remained the biggest supplier of imported goods to the Philippines with $2.60-billion worth of receipts during the month, followed by Indonesia with $1.14 billion, Japan with $927.50 million, USA with $735.40 million, and the Republic of Korea with $691.74 million.

In terms of exports, receipts for the month stood at $7.100 billion. This is 13.2% higher than the $6.273 billion the previous year, but lower than the $7.711 billion in October.

The biggest jumps were recorded in other mineral products which gained 51.0%; ignition wiring sets up 23.1%; electronic products up 22.9%; cathodes up 8.7%; and other manufactured goods up 4.8%.

Drops were seen in the exports of coconut oil down 35.2%; metal components down 19.2%; chemicals down 15.1%; electronic equipment and parts down 4.7%; and machinery and transport equipment down 0.2%.

Hong Kong accounted for the highest export value from the Philippines, with $1.16 billion or 16.3% of the total goods shipped overseas during the month.

Completing the top five export trading partners were the USA with $1.14 billion, Japan with $938.30 million, China with $876.27 million, and Singapore with $369.25 million. — DVM, GMA Integrated News