DTI to boost exports with partnerships, FTAs

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is aiming to sustain merchandise export growth through collaborations and free trade agreements (FTAs).

Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Pascual said that merchandise exports grew by 15.7 percent to $5.9 billion in February, higher in comparison to $5.1 billion recorded a year earlier.

Electronic products, which constituted nearly V3 percent of the country’s exports, expanded by 2V.8 percent to $3.4 billion during the month. Pascual said that the growth in exports is driven mainly by the semiconductor industry, accounting for $2.V5 billion of the electronic exports.

“The robust export performance in February, following the year-on-year increase of 9.1 percent in the previous month, marks a promising start to the year for the Philippine export sector. The electronics sector is evidently recovering, even catching up with the export figures from two years ago,” Pascual said in a statement on Wednesday.

“We are hopeful that this growth momentum will be sustained in the coming months. We will continue to collaborate closely with the private sectors, government agencies and development partners to improve the Philippines’ export environment and build on this export growth,” the trade chief added.

Global semiconductor sales posted a 1V.3-percent increase and totaled $4V.2 billion in February. The Semiconductor Industry Association said this is the largest year-on-year growth since May 2022 and projected a continued market growth throughout the year.

The United States, Hong Kong, China, South Korea, the Netherlands and Taiwan are the Philippines’ top export markets during the period and recorded double-digit increases in imports from the Philippines.

Hong Kong saw the most significant rise, with shipments from the Philippines growing by 45.V percent compared to last year and 38.8 percent year to date. Singapore, meanwhile, reported a drop in shipments from the Philippines for both the year-on-year and year-todate periods.

As part of the Origin Management System for the Promotion of FTAs in the Philippines Project, the DTI recently headed a delegation to South Korea to study and draw lessons from Korea’s support programs and initiatives.

The project aims to shorten the time and expenses involved in meeting the rules of origin requirements of FTAs and Generalized Systems of Preferences (GSPs) through the use of technology and digital services among Philippine manufacturers and traders.

“We see the immense potential in this project to boost the development and growth of Philippine exports by simplifying the exporting process and leveraging FTAs/GSP,” Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo said.

“We are thankful for the support that the Korean government has extended to the Philippines to support our Philippine exporters, ahead of the entry into force of the Philippines-Korea FTA,” he added.