Exports up 15.7 percent in September—PSA

By: Ben O. de Vera - 10 years ago

MANILA, Philippines—The country’s merchandise exports rose 15.7 percent to $5.849 billion in September, posting the fastest month-on-month growth in the third quarter to signal improving trade prospects seen spilling over towards the end of the year.

Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data released on Tuesday showed that the shipments of Philippine-made goods abroad last September continued the double-digit growth streak posted since June, exceeding the $5.056 billion registered in September 2013.

Philippine Statistics Authority. SCREENGRAB from psa.gov.ph

The value of September exports was the highest so far this year.

The growth of exports in September was likewise higher than August’s 10.5 percent as well as July’s 12.4 percent, but lower than June’s 21.3 percent.

For the January to September period, total merchandise export sales reached $46.596 billion, 9.9-percent higher than the $42.386-billion registered in the same nine-month period in 2013.

In a statement, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Deputy Director-General Rolando G. Tungpalan said that the September export performance “signals the rebound of the exports sector, even surpassing most economies in the region during the period.”

Tungpalan noted that the Philippines’ export growth at the end of the third quarter surpassed China’s 15.3 percent, Vietnam’s 14.4 percent, South Korea’s 6.9 percent, Taiwan’s 4.7 percent, Indonesia’s 3.9 percent, Thailand’s 3.2 percent, Malaysia’s 3 percent, Hong Kong’s 1 percent, as well as Japan and Singapore’s negative performance of minus 1.2 percent and minus 1.6 percent, respectively.

Also, Tungpalan expressed confidence that the Philippines’ faster exports growth last September “hints of a positive mood across some markets, at least for the country’s top trading partners such as China, Singapore, Germany, South Korea, Thailand and the Netherlands” even as global economic recovery as a whole remained slow.

“Overall, total exports is expected to continue to post positive gains during the remaining months of the year owing to the holiday season. The Japanese and the US markets will likely boost Philippine exports for the remaining months given the recent optimism building up in the Japanese manufacturing sector and the broad-based expansion in industrial production in the US,” Tungpalan said.

According to PSA, the higher September exports came on the back of increased shipments of chemicals (up 163.8 percent), coconut oil (up 89.1 percent), electronics (up 13.6 percent), machinery and transport equipment (up 122 percent), manufactures (up 14.1 percent), and minerals (up 95.3 percent).

However, lower export receipts were posted last September by apparel and clothing (down 3.4 percent), furniture and woodcraft (down 26.4 percent), ignition wiring sets used in aircraft, ships and vehicles (down 0.9 percent), as well as metal components (26.2 percent).

Shipments of electronic products—the country’s largest merchandise export sector—grew to $2.442 billion in September from $2.150 billion in the same month in 2013. Electronics cornered over two-fifths of September’s export revenues.

Last September, Japan remained the top destination of Philippine exports, followed by the United States, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Germany, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and the Netherlands. Shipments to these top 10 markets already comprised 87.3 percent of September’s total exports.