Source: Philippine Star
MANILA, Philippines - The country’s imports surged by 30.3 percent in January, the strongest growth in seven years, as purchases of oil products as well as capital and consumer goods improved.
The National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday the country’s aggregate import bill for January reached $4.26 billion, $3.27 billion higher than the $3.269 billion recorded a year ago.
As a result, the country’s trade deficit was lower at $682 million compared to $759 million last year.
The NSO earlier said that the January exports had also grown at their fastest pace in almost 15 years.
Philippine imports are dominated by inputs used by the semiconductor and electronics industry, the country’s biggest export sector and a major contributor to the economy.
Inward shipments of electronics, which accounted for 31.4 percent of the total bill, were up 2.2 percent in January from a year ago. The growth was slower than the 8.5-percent annual rise in December.
Oil imports posted a robust increase of 96.2 percent to $827.92 million from the previous year’s level of $421.93 million. They comprised 19.4 percent of total imports.
Transport equipment, the country’s third top import in January with an 8.9-percent share, likewise almost doubled to $380.22 million, the NSO said.
Imports of capital goods went up 51.4 percent to $1.38 billion while purchases of consumer goods amounted to $545.30 million, a 70.6-percent increase.
Rounding up the top 10 imports were organic and inorganic chemicals, which reached $101.61 million; plastics, $86.54 million; iron and steel, $83.57 million; telecommunication equipment and electrical machinery, $76.25 million; and metalliferous ores and metal scrap, $70.8 million.
Among the sources of the country’s imports, the US was the biggest, with a share of $570.72 million or 13.4 percent of the total bill.
Singapore came in second, followed by Japan, China, and Taiwan.
Last year, overall imports dropped 24.2 percent, in line with the government’s forecast of a 25 percent decline. The government expects imports to climb 13 percent to 15 percent this year.
Merchandise exports, on the other hand, surged 42.5 percent in January from a year ago to $3.58 billion, the highest jump in 15 years, boosted by a 51.2 percent rise in electronics shipments.
Exports are forecast to grow seven percent to nine percent this year after a 21.9 percent drop in 2009.
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