Electronics exports skyrocketed to a record-high $32.7 billion last year, pumping more than half of the country’s merchandise exports that increased to $62.87 billion for a growth rate of 9.53 percent.
“Philippine merchandise exports grew by 9-and-a-half percent in 2017, which is practically three times what we had expected for the year. It really exceeded the targets for merchandise exports,” said Senen M. Perlada, director of the Department of Trade
and Industry’s (DTI) Exports Marketing Bureau.
The trade department targeted a 6.5-percent to 7.5-percent growth in total exports last year, banking on an objective to grow services exports by at least 10 percent. On the other hand, the government had aimed to expand merchandise exports by at least 4 percent.
The record-high $32.7-billion electronics exports in the previous year contributed 52 percent of the country’s total commodity exports. It was also an 11-percent hike from the $29.4 billion recorded in 2016.
Nonelectronics exports, Perlada said, increased by 7.8 percent last year and was valued at $30.17 billion. With this, he said outbound shipment of merchandise is growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 2.4 percent.
Latest figures by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported a 10.4-percent growth for exports of services from January to September in the previous year. Services exports was valued at $26.53 billion as against $24 billion for the same period in 2016.
With the pace of the country’s exports performance, Perlada said the government is confident it can hit the lower end of its target of at least $122- billion export receipts in 2022. “There is enough confidence on our part that we will be able to hit—cautiously optimistic at the very least—the lower end of the target for 2022 of having exports reach $122 billion.”
“It is a range target of $122 billion to $131 billion. We are cautiously optimistic that we can at least get to the lower end of that target depending upon the kind of assistance packages that we provide,” the DTI official added. He promised the electronics industry will continue to receive the government’s strong backing, given its consistent performance of being the country’s top export producer.
Moreover, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries of the Philippines Foundation Inc. is positive that electronics share in the country’s exports will continue to grow in the next years. Seipi President Danilo C. Lachica said they are expecting electronics exports for this year to grow by 6 percent.
Sought why it is lower than the 11-percent growth of the industry last year, Lachica said it is better to “undercommit and overdeliver” so as to weather expectations. He added the sector’s outlook is still uncertain given the changing global demand.
Hong Kong remains to be the country’s top importer of electronics with a share of 21.56 percent, higher than the 19.47 percent in 2016. On the other hand, the United States took over China as the second-largest recipient of Philippine-made electronic products at 12.66 percent and 12.61 percent, respectively.
Rounding up the top importers of electronics are Singapore and Japan at 9.97 percent and 8.94 percent, respectively. Germany, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Thailand and South Korea are also among the highest importers of electronic products from the Philippines.
Image credits: Alysa Salen