Philippine trade deficit widens by 23% to $4.1B in March

FILE PHOTO: Trucks transporting containers with imported items are prepared to leave a port in Manila, Philippines May 25, 2016. REUTERS/Erik De Castro

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s trade deficit widened by 23 percent in March on the back of a double-digit growth in imports, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday.

PSA data showed the trade deficit in March had amounted to $4.1 billion, bigger than the $3.4 billion gap a year ago.

Exports grew by 5.9 percent to $6.6 billion while imports expanded by 11.9 percent to $10.7 billion.

Value of Philippine export and import for March 2025

READ: Philippine exporters brace for underperformance in 2025

By commodity group, electronic products continued to be the country’s top exports in March with total earnings of $3.64 billion or 55.2 percent of total during the period. This was followed by other manufactured goods with an export value of $434.41 million (6.6 percent) and other mineral products with $246.56 million (3.7 percent).

Electronic products likewise accounted for the biggest bulk of imports in March amounting to $2.52 billion or 23.5 percent of total. This was followed by mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials at $1.31 billion (12.2 percent) and transport equipment at $1.06 billion (9.9 percent).

READ: Philippine trade deficit fell 11.4% in February