WASHINGTON: The value of merchandise imports rose in September, the government reported this morning. Preliminary data by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that a total of $6.17 billion worth of goods was shipped into the country in September, up 6.7% from the revised $5.78 billion posted a year earlier.
Imports in the nine months to September grew 2.3% to $49.92 billion. With exports down by a revised 5.7% to $44.28 billion in the first nine months, the country registered a deficit in trade in goods amounting to $5.63 billion.
PSA attributed the increase in imports in September to the “positive performance” of seven out of the top 10 imported commodities, namely: metal products; iron and steel; industrial machinery and equipment; transport equipment; telecommunication equipment and electrical machinery; electronic products; and miscellaneous manufactured articles.
Electronic products, which accounted for 32.3% of the September import bill, jumped 34.7% to $1.99 billion. Components or semiconductors, which had a 26.5% share among electronic products, grew 41.5% to $1.63 billion in September.
Raw materials and intermediate goods, which made up 43% of imports, rose 20.1% to $2.65 billion during the month. Capital goods, which had a 32.6% share of the total import bill, rose 40.7% to $2.01 billion. China remained the main source of imports in September with a 15.3% share. It was followed by the United States (11.2%) and Japan (11.1%).
