Philippines Trade Deficit Widens In July As Imports Outpace Exports

Sep 25, 2007 - Philippines trade deficit widened to US$854.0 million in July from US$396.0 million a year ago, the National Statistics Office said Tuesday. In June, the trade deficit stood at US$589.0 million.

The report said that imports climbed 14.3% from the previous year to US$5.042 billion, a sharp jump compared to the 3.8% growth in the prior month. Meanwhile, exports rose 4.3% to US$4.188 billion in July, after climbing 1.5% in the prior month. This has taken the total merchandise trade to US$9.230 billion, marking an increase of 9.5% from the previous year; the highest growth recorded this year.

On a monthly basis, total imports rose at a slower pace of 7.2% in July, compared to the 9.5% growth in June.

Imports of electronic products, accounting for 42.7% of the aggregate import bill, advanced 12.8% on an annual basis to US$2.152 billion, compared to an increase of 8.5% in June. The annual increase was due to the robust inbound shipment of semiconductors. On a monthly basis, imports of electronic products dropped 1.7% in July, spiking 22.5% in June.

Commodity wise, cereals and cereal preparations led the list with 59.6% growth, followed by mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials climbing 44.3%. Imports of organic and inorganic chemicals, telecommunication equipment and electrical machinery, plastic and electronic products also registered double-digit growth in July.

The statistics office further said that the total external trade in goods for January to July reached US$59.080 billion, showing a 5.1% increase from last year. Total imports grew 4.1% to US$30.355 billion, while exports went up 6.3% to US$28.725 billion. This has resulted in a trade deficit of US$1.629 billion during the seven-month period.

The U.S remained the top source of imports, claiming12.5% of total import bill. This was despite the imports from US falling 9.9% annually. Meanwhile, exports to the U.S amounted to US$767.95 million. Imports from Japan declined 2.6% while imports from Saudi Arabia increased 319.6% from last year.