Philippines incurs $112-M trade deficit in October

(Updated 5:07 p.m.) The Philippines incurred $112 million in trade deficit last October, from $60 million a year earlier, the National Statistics Office said Thursday. “Total merchandise imports increased at 28.4 percent to $4.888 billion from $3.808 billion in October 2009," the NSO said in its merchandise trade report. “Total exports, on the other hand, rose by 27.4 percent to $4.776 billion from $3.748 billion in October 2009," the NSO added. The value of total merchandise trade for October widened 27.9 percent to $9.664 billion from $7.556 billion in October 2009.

Source: National Statistics Office. Graphics: Analyn Perez, GMANews.TV

Largest source of imports The trade performance in October expanded the Southeast Asian nation’s trade deficit to $1.742 billion in January-October, or narrower than the $4.104-billion deficit in the same 10-month period last year. “Accounting for 31.5 percent of the aggregate import bill, payments for electronic products (including consigned and direct importation using the expanded coverage of electronic products) in October 2010 amounted to $1.541 billion," NSO noted. Japan, including Okinawa, was the country’s largest source of imports for October 2010, with a 12.3-percent share of the total import bill, higher by 20 percent to $601.20 million from $500.95 million in October 2009. Exports to Japan amounted to $762.35 million, yielding a two-way trade value of $1.364 billion and a trade surplus for the Philippines of $161.15 million.

Source: National Statistics Office. Graphics: Analyn Perez, GMANews.TV

The US, including Alaska and Hawaii, is the second biggest source of Philippine imports, with a 9.8-percent share. Payments worth $481.47 million were recorded in October, up by 10.1 percent from $437.41 million a year earlier. Philippine exports to the US reached $696.85 million, generating a total trade value of $1.178 billion and $215.38 million in trade surplus for the Philippines. Imports from China, the Southeast Asian nation’s third largest trading partner, accounted for 8.9 percent of the total import bill in October. Imports payments rose 68.4 percent to $436.66 million from $259.27 million during the same month in 2009. Exports to China amounted to $564.96 million, bringing the total trade value with the world’s second largest economy — after the US — to $1.002 billion and the trade surplus $128.30 million in favor of the Philippines. — JE/VS, GMANews.TV