MANILA: The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is expected to collect only up to P400 billion in revenues this year, below its target of about P437 billion.
Customs Commissioner Alberto Lina said the BOC is unlikely to hit its 2015 revenue goal due to the continued decline of global crude oil prices. Lina said the agency may lose as much as P75 billion in revenues if the prices of crude oil continue its decline.
“We have huge losses on oil, roughly P75 billion up to December because based on projections, the price would settle at around $50 per barrel. Currently, it’s at $60 per barrel already,” he said.
He added that collections figure for this year will likely range between P390 million to P400 million because tax revenues from petroleum make up about 30 percent of the BOC’s total annual income. The BOC collected P178.36 billion in revenues in the first six months of 2015, 11 percent below its P202.18 billion target.
“Overall, the growth in collection was driven by the increased in the total volume of importation by 19.3 percent and slight improvement in the total value of importation by 1.6 percent,” Lina said.
The BOC earlier said it exceeded its collection target in June by an estimated P1.8 billion due to strong imports. In 2016, the customs agency is tasked to collect P498.7 billion in revenues.
