I. Introduction

Domestic Trade Statistics gathers information on the movement of commodities in the country. It is a compilation of administrative data on commodities carried through different transport systems in a country. However, in the Philippines, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) compiles domestic trade carried through air and water only. The domestic trade carried through rail are excluded due to the discontinuance of cargo operation of the Philippine National Railways (PNR). Moreover, the PSA is currently studying the conduct of survey to gather domestic trade statistics for land mode of transport. Refer to Sections I.3 and I.4 for the detailed coverage and limitation of the domestic trade statistics.

This Special Release features the highlights of the Domestic Trade Statistics in the Philippines for the fourth quarter of 2022. The data pertain to the flow of goods through airports and seaports in the country.

I.1. Objective

The domestic trade statistics is compiled to collect and generate information on the inflow and outflow of commodities in the country.

Specifically, the domestic trade statistics aims to:

1. Generate information on the value and quantity of traded commodities;

2. Generate regional commodity flow by mode of transport and by port of origin and destination; and

3. Generate number of passenger transported through water transport system.

I.2. Uses

The domestic trade statistics is compiled to constitute the bases for the formulation and implementation of various regional development programs like countryside development and port planning.

Specifically, the results are used in:

1. Constructing inter-regional and inter-industry relation tables; and

2. Conducting market research and feasibility studies, among others.

I.3. Scope and Coverage

Commodities that are included in the compilation of domestic trade statistics are the following:

1. Food and Live Animals;

2. Beverages and Tobacco;

3. Crude Materials, Inedible, Except Fuels;

4. Mineral Fuels, Lubricants and Related Materials;

5. Animal and Vegetable Oils, Fats and Waxes;

6. Chemicals and Related Products, N.E.S.;

7. Manufactured Goods Classified Chiefly by Material

8. Machinery and Transport Equipment;

9. Miscellaneous Manufactured Articles; and

10. Commodities and Transactions Not Classified Elsewhere in the PSCC.

On the other hand, commodities that are excluded are the following:

1. Goods transported by vessels of the Philippine Navy;

2. Fish and other marine products unloaded in fishing ports;

3. Fish and other marine products landed directly from the sea; and

4. Logistic goods intended for the vessel and the crew.

However, domestic trade statistics cover only the following mode of transport:

1. Coastwise trade and passenger from 114 domestic seaports in the country; and

2. Air trade from 17 operated domestic airports.

I.4. Limitation

The compilation of domestic trade statistics by mode of transport is limited only to water and air. The PSA is currently studying the conduct of survey to gather domestic trade statistics through land mode of transport. Passenger statistics by air are also excluded in the compilation of domestic trade statistics.

Data through rail mode of transport halted in 2006 due to the discontinuance of cargo operation of the PNR. At present, cargo movements are still not operational in PNR.

II. Data Collection

II.1. Data Collection Procedure

The collection of administrative documents is undertaken by the Provincial Statistical Offices (PSOs) every week.

II.2. Sources of Information

The source documents for the Domestic Trade Statistics are the following:

II.3. Data Items

Domestic Trade Statistics comprise of the following data items gathered from the source documents:

III. Processing

III.1. Processing at the Provincial Statistical Offices (PSOs)

All copies of documents are compiled and processed by the PSOs of PSA. The PSOs submit monthly data files to the Central Office (CO) not later than one month after the reference month. The following are done in the PSOs:

1. Receipt and control of documents – done by recording all trade documents from the source agencies (PPA and PAL).
2. Manual processing (coding) – done by transcribing the data items from the coasting manifest to the processing sheet (PS) to facilitate data entry. 
3. Machine processing (data entry and validation) – done by encoding all the data from the PS for coastwise and passenger documents. On the other hand, entries from the air waybills are directly encoded using the system.
4. Submission of data files – all cleaned data files are submitted through email to the CO (tsd.staff@psa.gov.ph cc: j.soliven@psa.gov.ph). The PSO may also send those late submissions and additional data files for inclusion in the tabulation at the CO.

III.2. Processing at the CO

Final data review of the data files, generation of statistical tables, and preparation of Special Releases are done at the CO, particularly in the Trade Statistics Division (TSD) of the Economic Sector Statistics Service.

The following are done in the CO:

1. Receipt and control of data files – done by recording and acknowledging the data files received from the PSOs.
2. Compile/process/merge data files into masterfile by month and mode of transport (coastwise, passenger, and air) – done to generate the statistical tables for the quarterly and annual Special Releases.

III.3. Commodity Classification

The commodity classification used in the compilation of domestic trade statistics is the 1993 Philippine Standard Commodity Classifications (PSCC) Rev. 2 patterned with the 1985 Standard International Trade Classification Rev. 3.

The classification is presented in six levels of detail: section (1-digit), division (2-digit), group (3-digit), sub-group (4-digit), items (5-digit), and sub-items (7-digit).

Below are the commodity classification levels used in the Domestic Trade Statistics by mode of transport:

The level of disaggregation of commodities in the 1993 PSCC is shown below.

IV. Concepts and Definitions of Terms

Domestic trade statistics refer to the movement of commodities in the country.

Trade balance refers to the difference between outflow and inflow, that is, outflow minus inflow. A positive value indicates a favorable trade balance, while a negative value indicates an unfavorable trade balance.

Inflow refers to the total value of commodities that enter a specified region/province.

Outflow refers to the total value of commodities that come out from a specified region/province.

Port/Station of origin refers to the port or station where the cargo originally came from.

Port/Station of destination refers to the port or station where the cargoes are destined for.

Region of origin refers to the regional location of the port or station where the cargo originally came from.

Region of destination refers to the regional location of the port or station where the cargoes are destined for.

V. Dissemination of Results and Revision

V.1. Dissemination of Results

The quarterly Special Releases (SR) on domestic trade statistics are published two months after the reference quarter at the PSA website (www.psa.gov.ph) and in the OpenSTAT (openstat.psa.gov.ph).

V.2. Revision Policy

All documents received after the cut-off date, which is 30 days after the reference quarter, are included in the generation of the revised results.  The revised data of the previous quarter are reported during the release of the preliminary report for the current quarter. The revisions are made for the previous quarters until the annual report is released four months after the reference year.

VI. Citation

Philippine Statistics Authority. 15 March 2023. Highlights of the Domestic Trade Statistics in the Philippines, Fourth Quarter 2022 (Preliminary). https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/quarterly-domestic-trade/technical-notes

VII. Contact Information

Ma. Julieta P. Soliven 
Chief Statistical Specialist 
Trade Statistics Division 
8376-1975
j.soliven@psa.gov.ph

For data requests, you may contact the: 
Knowledge Management and Communications Division 
Telephone: (02) 8462-6600 locals 839, 833 and 834
E-mail: info@psa.gov.ph