PH total external trade shrinks 15.4% in March

IN MARCH, the country’s total goods trade reached US$15.44 billion, marking a 15.4 percent decrease from last year’s $18.25 billion.

Of the total goods traded during the month, 60.3 percent were imported goods, while the remaining were exported goods.

Export sales in March amounted to $6.13 billion, down by 7.3 percent from the $6.61 billion total exports in the same month last year.

The total value of exports in the first quarter this year amounted to $17.98 billion, up by 4.8 percent from $17.16 billion in January to March 2023.

By major type of goods, the PSA said exports of manufactured goods contributed the largest to the country’s total exports in March 2024 amounting to $4.97 billion or a share of 81 percent. This was followed by mineral products with a share of $567.35 million (9.3 percent), and total agro-based products, which contributed $463.70 million (7.6 percent).

Exports to the US led in value, totaling $961.94 million or 15.7 percent of the country’s total exports in March 2024. This was followed by Hong Kong ($880.88 million), China (13.7 percent), Japan (12.9 percent) and Korea (6.4 percent).

Imports

March imports, on the other hand, amounted to $9.31 billion, down by 20 percent from the $11.63 billion import value in the same month last year, bringing the first quarter import value to $29.22 billion.

This represents a decline of 7.6 percent from the $31.61 billion recorded in the first three months of 2023.

Electronic products logged the highest import value in March, which amounted to $2.01 billion or a share of 21.6 percent of the country’s total imports. This was followed by mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials at $1.46 billion (15.7 percent) and transport equipment at $946.27 million (10.2 percent).

China was the country’s largest supplier of imported goods valued at $2.27 billion or 24.4 percent of the country’s total imports in March 2024. Japan, came second, with $794.02 million followed by the USA ($705.85 million), Korea ($698.79 million ), and Indonesia ($665.49 million).

Growth in manufacturing

Meanwhile, a top official of the government sees brighter prospects ahead following the 5.7 percent economic growth in the first quarter of this year, with manufacturing leading the growth.

The Philippines grew the fastest alongside Vietnam (5.7 percent) followed by Indonesia (5.1 percent), Malaysia (3.9 percent), and Singapore (2.7 percent).

“More than our performance in the region, what is to be celebrated here is the encouraging growth seen in the manufacturing sector as it is the most crucial sector for long-term employment, productivity, value-added generation and innovation. This sets the course for the Philippines to become a premier manufacturing hub in Asia,” said Finance Secretary Ralph Recto, in a statement. “The significant growth in our manufacturing sector is a major win for the country’s labor market... So, if we are to sustain our high growth trajectory, we have to focus on expanding both manufacturing and services.

Manufacturing, the main component of the industry sector, expanded by 4.5 percent on the back of increased production of food, electronics and chemical products.