MANILA, Philippines – The country’s merchandise imports went down by 25 percent to $3.669 billion in September from $4.891 billion in the same period last year, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday. The latest drop, however, was an improvement from the 28.3- percent decline recorded in August this year.
The September figure also brought the country’s nine-month imports at $31.677 billion or a 30.2-percent dip from last year’s $45.383 billion.
Electronic products, which accounted for 36.3 percent of the total import bill, slid 22.1 percent year-on-year but improved 2.2 percent on a month-on-month basis.
The Philippine imports electronic products as components for it main export products – electronic items.
Owing to the sluggish imports and exports figure of the country in January to September, the total external trade for the period declined 29.6 percent to $59.318 billion.
“Thus, the balance of trade in goods for the Philippines registered a deficit of $4.036 billion during the nine-month period in 2006 from $6.483-billion deficit in the same nine-month period last year,” the NSO said.
Purchases of electronic parts, which accounted for 36.3 percent of the total import bill, dropped 22.1 percent to $1.331 billion in September from the $1.708 billion recorded in the same month last year. This was mainly caused by a 25.1-percent decrease in semiconductor imports, which had the biggest share of electronics
purchases at 26.7 percent.
Electronics are mostly used in the country’s exports industry, a bedrock of the economy.
Other key imports during September were mineral fuels, lubricants, transport equipment
, industrial machinery, organic and inorganic chemicals, iron and steel.
Japan remained the country’s largest source of imports for the month with a 14.6 percent share, recording payments worth $534.15 million. This was, however, lower by 5.8 percent than last year’s $566.74 million.
The United States came in second with $379.75 million or a 10.4 percent share of the total import bill. US was followed by China (9.3percent), Singapore (8.6 percent), and Korea (8.3 percent).
Other top sources were Taiwan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and Indonesia.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) expects merchandise imports to decline by 17 percent this year.
Philippine exports fell 18.3 percent in September from a year earlier, but the drop was the smallest since November last year. –Rica D. Delfinado (The Philippine Star) with abs-cbnNews.com
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