Exports dropped 1.2% in March

An overview of cranes loading ships with containers at the Manila South Harbor port taken in 2009. Philippine exports in March 2012 declined by 1.2 percent year on year to $4.302 billion, according data from the National Statistics Office. AFP PHOTO/TED ALJIBE

Philippine exports declined by 1.2 percent year on year to $4.302 billion in March despite expectations that trade in electronics would pick up on the back of the global market’s recovery.

The shipments in March also dipped 2.9 percent from those in February, when earnings reached $4.43 billion.

Still, electronics shipments rose 1.1 percent to $2.263 billion in March from year-ago level, according to data from the National Statistics Office.

Earlier this week, Singapore-based DBS Group said Philippine exports would grow by 9.1 percent in March as the global electronics market showed an unmistakable upswing.

The financial service provider said orders from North America for semiconductor shipments reached a 19-month high in March.

Electronics accounted for 52.6 percent of total outbound cargoes.

The country provides about 10 percent of the world’s semiconductor manufacturing services. Semiconductors account for about three-fifths of exports.

NSO data further showed that receipts from the country’s second top export, articles of apparel and clothing accessories, increased by 2.3 percent to $152.28 million. Woodcrafts and furniture placed third, rising by 6.3 percent to $151.3 million.

In March, the United States was the Philippines’ top export market accounting for 15.5 percent of total outbound traffic, the value of which went up by 9.6 percent year on year to $668.25 million.

Japan also accounted for 15.5 percent of the total, but the value of shipments reached $664.78 million, down by 12.6 percent.

The government believes that exports will grow by 10 percent this year, while imports will climb 15 percent, as manufacturers seek to shore up depleted inventories.—With Reuters