PH export receipts up 10.5% in August

The value of Philippine-made goods shipped abroad rose by a double-digit pace in August.

According to data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Friday, the country’s merchandise exports grew by 10.5 percent to $5.474 billion last August, from the $4.956 billion recorded in the same month last year.

On a monthly basis, the value of exports in August was higher than the previous month’s $5.461 billion.

Although the value of goods shipped out rose for a third straight month in August, the country’s export gains in June and July were better at 21.3 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively.

From January to August, export sales reached $40.748 billion—9.2 percent higher than the $37.33 billion reported in the same eight-month period of 2013.

The Philippines’ export growth in August was the third fastest in the East and Southeast Asian regions, after Vietnam’s 12.6-percent expansion and Indonesia’s 10.6 percent, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Emmanuel F. Esguerra, Neda deputy director general and officer-in-charge, yesterday said in a statement that the double-digit climb of merchandise exports would likely be sustained in the coming months.

“This expectation is primarily anchored on increasing global demand alongside business expansions and new product launches for garments and information technology sectors, as well as improved availability of raw materials and agricultural products. Moving forward, export revenue growth is likely to be driven by the rebound in the export of electronic products, machinery and transport and other electronics,” Esguerra said.

The Neda official noted that agriculture products, such as coconuts, manufactured goods, as well as minerals (copper metal, chromium ore and iron ore agglomerates, among others) helped boost the value of outbound shipments last month, despite a slowdown in the sales of forest and petroleum products.

Manufacturing was still the major contributor to exports growth, “reflecting the positive developments” in global demand, Esguerra said.

In August, shipments of manufactured goods went up by 8.4 percent to $4.4 billion, from last year’s $4.1 billion.

That month, the top merchandise export was electronics, which grew by a tenth to $2.3 billion, from $2.1 billion in the same period last year. Semiconductor components and electronic devices comprise over two-fifths of the country’s export receipts.

The Neda also pointed out that the PSA Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries (Missi) for the same month showed higher net sales in terms of value and volume.

According to Esguerra, the August Missi report reflected a domestic manufacturing industry that was “moving towards more diversification” amid “continued strong local demand for manufactured goods and improvement in export demand.”

Ahead of the holidays, the manufacturing sector is expected to ramp up production to serve customers here and abroad, Esguerra added.

As for the agricultural goods, the robust sales of coconut products—which more than doubled on the back of higher global prices—bolstered the sector’s receipts last August to $505.2 million—41.0-percent higher than last year’s $358.4 million.

Esguerra said the domestic production of coconut-based goods, which accounted for over half of agro-based shipments, had improved following a slump in June and July.

Exports of mineral products, meanwhile, jumped by almost a third year-on-year in August amid higher demand from China, Hong Kong and South Korea, the Neda added.

The Philippines’ top export markets last August were Japan, China, the United States, the Asean region, and the European Union.