Imports up 8.8% to $18.6B in 1st quarter

Strong domestic demand pushed the import bill by more than a tenth to $6.36 billion in March, reflecting expectations of robust economic growth this year, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said Wednesday.

A preliminary Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) report showed that the value of imported goods that entered the country last March grew 11.7 percent from $5.69 billion a year ago, bringing the first-quarter total to $18.6 billion, up 8.8 percent from $17.09 billion last year.

The growth in March was the fastest in five months and reversed the 5.6-percent year-on-year decline last February. In a statement, Neda said the Philippines was the only country that posted positive imports growth that month among 11 selected Asian countries.

The PSA said six major imported commodities boosted imports at the end of the first quarter, namely iron and steel (up 66.3 percent), industrial machinery and equipment (up 50.4 percent), other food and live animals (up 34.9 percent), electronic products (up 30.1 percent), telecommunication equipment and electrical machinery (up 26 percent), and miscellaneous manufactured articles (up 14.1 percent).

Capital goods imports rose 24.1 percent to $2.1 billion, sustaining double-digit growth for the seventh straight month.

“The continued strength of merchandise imports and the fact that it is fueled by spending on capital goods bodes well for the economy. This growth also mirrors the positive prospects of the economy that are expected to be sustained for the rest of the year,” Economic Planning Secretary Emmanuel F. Esguerra said. The government was hopeful to hit at least the lower end of the 6.8- to 7.8-percent economic growth target for this year following a better-than-expected 6.9-percent expansion during the first quarter.

“Expected to fuel imports growth in the near term will be the continued expansion of public and private construction, along with investments in durable equipment. Meanwhile, increased employment opportunities with increased government spending for personnel services and maintenance and operating expenditures will contribute to the growth of consumer goods imports,” added Esguerra, who is the director-general of Neda.  Ben O. de Vera