Electronics still PH’s top export earner

MANILA, Philippines–Electronics products remained the Philippines’ top export earner in August, accounting for about 41.6 percent of the country’s total export receipts during the month, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. (Seipi) said Tuesday.

In a report, Seipi president Dan Lachica said earnings from the exportation of electronic products grew by 9.96 percent to $2.28 billion in August 2014, from $2.07 billion in the same month last year.

According to Lachica, six out of nine electronics sub sectors posted significant increases in export revenues. These are components/devices ($1.58 billion); office equipment ($31.5 million); consumer electronics ($37.68 million); communication/radar ($27.61 million); control and instrumentation ($61.33 million); and medical/industrial instrumentation ($10.05 million).

Exports of “other electronics” likewise surged by 49.49 percent to $94.03 million in the same period, from $62.9 million last year.

Compared to the previous month, the August figures translated to an 8.92 percent increase from $2.09 billion in July.

“The majority of the electronic products showed increases in exports. Only consumer electronics, control and instrumentation, and automotive electronics posted decline in shipments,” Lachica said.

As of end-August, cumulative exports of electronic products registered a 5.2-percent increase to $16.28 billion from $15.48 billion in the same period last year.

Six electronics sub-sectors, according to Lachica, posted an increase during the eight-month period, while only three sectors, namely, components/devices; telecommunication and automotive electronics reported decline.

For the first eight months of the year, the country’s top five export destinations were Hong Kong (which accounted for 17.6 percent of revenues); China (12.7 percent); the United States (12.1 percent); Singapore (11.8 percent) and Japan (9.4 percent).

Rounding up the top 10 markets during the period were Germany (which accounted for 7.7 percent of electronics exports receipts); Taiwan (5.4 percent); Sweden (4.7 percent); Netherlands (4.1 percent); and Korea (2.9 percent).

For this year, Seipi adjusted its growth forecast amid the adverse effects of high power costs and the continuing container congestion at the Port of Manila.

Lachica earlier said that export revenues of locally manufactured electronics components were expected to grow by between 5 and 8 percent this year from the $21.8 billion in 2013, reflecting a wider range of growth forecast for 2014.

Seipi’s new and much bullish forecast was higher than the initial and more modest 5 percent target that the group announced earlier this year.

In the new forecast, electronics exports are expected to grow to $23.5 billion, up from the previous projection of $22.9 billion.

Lachica said the increase could be attributed to the recovery of key markets especially for automotive and industrial products such as the United States and Europe.