TOTAL TRADE INCHES UP BY 0.4 PERCENT

Total trade in goods for the first two months of 1999 amounted to $9.803 billion which was 0.4 percent higher than $9.765 billion last year. Purchases of foreign-made merchandise dropped by 14.2 percent to $4.653 billion from $5.423 billion a year ago. On the other hand, exports posted an 18.6 percent year-on-year upswing with an aggregate dollar revenue of $5.150 billion, up from $4.342 billion. The balance of trade in goods (BOT-G) ended in a surplus amounting to $497 million.

Merchandise trade for the month of February alone grew by 0.2 percent to $4.824 billion from $4.812 billion in 1998. Dollar inflows from rising exports amounted to $2.569 billion, increasing by 15.4 percent from $2.227 billion last year. Expenditures for imported goods dropped by 12.8 percent to $2.254 billion from $2.585 billion a year ago. The BOT-G surplus stood at $315 million.

ELECTRONICS AND COMPONENTS LEAD FEBRUARY IMPORTS

Despite posting a 9.8 percent slowdown, payments for Electronics and Components accounted for the biggest slice of the import bill for February. Accounting for 26.7 percent of the aggregate import bill, payments reached $601.50 million, down from $667.20 million a year earlier.

Telecommunication Equipment and Electrical Machinery was second top import with purchases reaching $173.43 million, which was a 22.0 percent decline from $222.23 million a year ago.

Industrial Machinery and Equipment, accounting for 7.0 percent of the total bill, ranked third as payments reached $156.97 million, down by 12.2 percent from $178.70 million in 1998.

Payments for Materials/Accessories Imported on Consignment Basis for the Manufacture of Other Electrical and Electronic Machinery and Equipment, with a 6.8 percent share of the aggregate bill, fell by 31.0 percent to $153.49 million from $222.37 million last year.

Mineral Fuels, Lubricants and Related Materials, with a 5.4 percent share, recorded purchases valued at $121.61 million for a 32.3 percent drop over $179.61 million last year.

Office and EDP Machines, accounting for 4.7 percent of the total, was the sixth top import with a value of $105.97 million or 20.5 percent lower than $133.35 million last year.

Rounding up the list of the top imports for February 1999 were Transport Equipment, $79.33 million; Textile Yarn, Fabrics, Made-up Articles and Related Products, $75.52 million; Cereals and Cereal Preparations, $66.75 million; and, Iron and Steel, $58.69 million.

Aggregate payment for the top ten imports for the month amounted to $1,593.26 million or 70.7 percent of the total bill.

CAPITAL GOODS ACCOUNT FOR 40.9 PERCENT OF TOTAL IMPORT BILL

Led by Telecommunication Equipment and Electrical Machinery, Capital Goods accounted for 40.9 percent of the aggregate bill even as its value of importation declined by 11.9 percent to $922.50 million from $1.048 billion a year ago.

Payments for Raw Materials and Intermediate Goods consisting of unprocessed raw materials and semi-processed raw materials dropped by 17.8 percent year-on-year to $881.40 million from $1.073 billion. Its share of the aggregate bill was placed at 39.1 percent.

Purchases of Consumer Goods, valued at $218.98 million, registered a 26.0 percent increase from $173.82 million.

Expenditures for the two other commodity groups, Mineral Fuel & Lubricant and Special Transactions, combined for $231.61 million or 10.3 percent of the total.

JAPAN TOPS MAJOR SOURCES OF IMPORTS FOR FEBRUARY

Japan, emerging as the biggest source with a 23.6 percent share, reported imports valued at $531.06 million against exports amounting to $347.69 million. Total trade reached $878.75 million while the BOT-G was in deficit at $183.37 million.

Purchases of US-made goods, accounting for 20.7 percent of the total, declined by 30.0 percent to $466.85 million from $666.75 million a year back. Exports to the US on the other hand amounted to $745.28 million, yielding a two-way trade figure of $1,212.13 million and a BOT-G surplus of $278.43 million.

Republic of Korea followed as the third biggest source of imports. Valued at $169.75 million, imports from the Republic of Korea increased by 11.8 percent from $151.81 million last year while revenue from exports reached $60.86 million resulting in a total trade value of $230.61 million and a $108.89 million BOT-G deficit.

Other major sources of imports for the month were Singapore, $110.49 million; Peoples Republic of China, $105.25 million; Hongkong, $99.03 million; Taiwan, $97.49 million; Malaysia, $80.62 million; Germany, $67.67 million; and Thailand, $60.02 million.

Payment for imports from the top ten sources for the month amounted to $1,788.23 million or 79.3 percent of the total.

UNCOLLECTED DOCUMENTS

As of presstime 71 out of 41,465 export documents and 48 out of 47,752 import documents are still expected from the ports.

Source: National Statistics Office
               Manila, Philippines