Philippine trade deficit widens in January

The Philippines opened the year with a wider trade deficit even as imports contracted and exports expanded during the month, data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Tuesday revealed.

Preliminary data showed that the balance of trade in goods (BoT-G) or the difference between the value of exports and imports stood at a $4.221-billion deficit in January, wider than the $4.178-billion deficit the previous month, but narrower than the $5.557-billion deficit in January 2023.

A deficit indicates that the value of a country's imports exceeded export receipts, while a surplus indicates more export shipments than imports.

Exports for the month stood at $5.935 billion, up from $5.784 billion last December, and 9.1% higher than the $5.440 billion in January 2023.

The biggest annual increase was seen in the export receipts of electronic products which stood at $3.452 billion from $2.968 billion a year ago. This was followed by machinery and transport equipment which climbed by $37.76 million to $223.96 million, and coconut oil up by $29.25 million to $138.17 million.

Increases were also seen in export receipts of gold which climbed $23.83 million to $115.33 million, and copper concentrates which increased by $21.56 million to $107.33 million.

Exports of manufactured goods accounted for the biggest share to the total exports for the month with $4.83 billion, followed by mineral products with $553.95 million, and total agro-based products with $430.39 million.

The United States was the biggest recipient of Philippines' exports with $869.25 million, followed by Hong Kong with $761.08 million, China with $624.79 million, and South Korea with $356.16 million.

Imports, meanwhile, increased to $10.157 billion from $9.962 billion in December, but declined from $10.997 billion in January 2023.

The highest annual decline was recorded in the value of imported goods of mineral fuels, lubricants, and related materials which fell by $733.27 million to $1.337 billion, followed by electronic products by $254.43 million to $2.191 billion, and metalliferous ores by $103.87 million to $200.00 million.

The highest import values were in electronic products at $2.191 billion, mineral fuels with $21.337 billion, transport equipment with $826.58 million, industrial machinery and equipment with $493.71 million, and cereals at $463.74 million.

In terms of major types of goods, import of raw materials accounted for the largest share with $3.73 billion. Capital goods came in at $2.95 billion, and consumer goods with $2.09 billion.

China was the biggest supplier of imported goods for the month with $2.56 billion or 26.1%. Japan followed with $789.36 million, Indonesia with $779.13 million, South Korea with $682.00 million, and the United States with $671.86 million.

The latest figures brought the country’s total external trade to $16.093 billion in January, up from $15.746 billion the previous month, but lower than the $16.438 billion the previous year.—AOL, GMA Integrated News