EXPORTS REBOUND IN JULY 2011 FROM PREVIOUS MONTH

MANILA — Exports rebounded month-on-month in July 2011 as it reached US$4.4 billion, which is 7.3 percent higher than the US$4.1 billion total exports in June 2011. This is due to significant growth in agro-based and mineral products, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

According to the latest report from the National Statistics Office, exports of agro-based products in July 2011 grew by 50.2 percent from the same month last year, because of significant increases in the receipts from sugar products (15,348.9%), fruits and vegetables (69.1%), coconut products (17.3%), and natural rubber (347.6%).

“Sugar exports continued to benefit from higher domestic production, increased foreign demand, and escalating prices in the world market,” said Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Cayetano W. Paderanga, Jr.

Based on data from the World Bank, Paderanga said that prices of sugar products in the world market in July increased by 61.6 percent year-on-year, on the back of lower production in Brazil, which accounts 25 percent of global sugar output.

Meanwhile, export of mineral products grew year-on-year by 82.6 percent in July 2011 due to significant increases in the value of copper (52.1%) and gold (169.0%) shipments, compared with the same month a year ago.

“Gold exports continued to benefit from higher price and increased foreign demand, as investors favored safe-haven buying amid economic uncertainties in advanced regions like the Euro Area and the United States,” said Paderanga, who is also NEDA Director-General.

For the first seven months of 2011, export earnings grew by 3.3 percent to US$29.2 billion from US$28.2 billion in the same period a year ago. However, total exports for July 2011 contracted by 1.7 percent year-on-year due to slow foreign demand in electronics, which comprised more than 50 percent of the country’s total exports.

Electronic exports declined to US$2.3 billion in July 2011 from US$2.9 billion in the same period last year due to lower receipts from semiconductors (-33.5%), electronic data processing unit (-12.4%), communication/radar (-55.3%), consumer electronics (-10.9%), and medical/industrial instrumentation (-0.7%).

Despite this, the NEDA official is upbeat on performance of electronics exports in the coming months. Citing reports from the Semiconductor Industry Association and the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries of the Philippines, Inc., a seasonal boost in sales is anticipated in the coming months, as demand increases through the holiday season. The full recovery of the electronics supply chain in Japan is also expected by the end of the third quarter of 2011.

Meanwhile, manufactured exports in July 2011 dropped by 8.9 percent to US$3.6 billion from US$3.9 billion last year, year as higher outward shipments of major  export products such as wood manufactures (77.0%), machinery and transport equipment (33.2%), chemicals (38.7%), and garments (30.1%) were less than the 21.3 percent drop in electronic exports.

In terms of export destination, Japan was the top overseas market of Philippine products in July 2011, with a 23.8 percent share of the country’s total exports. Exports to Japan increased by 84.7 percent to US$1.1 billion in July 2011 from just US$571 million a year ago.

The significant growth was attributed to gains in the exports of semiconductors, automotive electronics, wood manufactures, chemicals, gold, machinery and transport equipment, copper, and bananas to Japan.

The United States of America was second top export market with a 14.7 percent share followed by the People’s Republic of China (12.3%), Singapore (7.9%) and Hong Kong SAR (6.5%).

Source: National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), MR 2011-060