Philippine Trade Gap Widens in June

The Philippines’ trade deficit widened to USD 6.0 billion in July 2026 from USD 4.4 billion in the same month a year earlier. Imports advanced 19.8% year-on-year to USD 14.1 billion, driven by higher purchases of electronic products (+61.3%), primarily semiconductors (+79%). Arrivals also increased for mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (+34.8%), as well as cereals and cereal preparations (+50.1%). China accounted for the largest share of imports at 29.5%, followed by South Korea (12.7%), Japan (7.9%), and Indonesia (5.7%). Meanwhile, exports grew at a smaller 10.8% to USD 8.1 billion, supported by increased sales of electronic products (+22.2%), machinery and transport equipment (+16.6%), and gold (+29.3%). The US remained the top export market, accounting for 20.7% of total exports, followed by Hong Kong (15.9%), China (11.3%), and Japan (10.5%). In the January-July period, the trade gap widened to USD 37.3 billion from USD 28.9 billion in the same period last year.

The Philippines’ trade deficit widened to USD 4.9 billion in June 2026 from USD 4.4 billion in the same month a year earlier. Imports rose 19.6% year-on-year to USD 13.7 billion, driven by a sharp increase in purchases of electronic products (+82.9%), mainly semiconductors (+105.4%), amid growing global AI demand. Imports also increased for mineral fuels (+6.3%), industrial machinery and equipment (+1.3%), and cereals and cereal preparations (+48.1%). China accounted for the largest share of imports (31.7%), followed by South Korea (13.0%), Japan (6.7%), and Indonesia (6.7%). Meanwhile, exports rose 24.1% to USD 8.8 billion, led by electronic products (+35.2%), primarily semiconductors (+33.4%). Exports also increased for machinery and transport equipment (+28.6%), gold (+43.8%), and other manufactured goods (+9.8%). The US remained the top export market, accounting for 20.1% of total exports, followed by Hong Kong (15.3%), China (11.4%), and Japan (11.3%).

The Philippines’ trade deficit widened to USD 5.5 billion in May 2026 from USD 3.6 billion in the same month a year earlier. This marked the second-largest trade gap in over a year, behind only April’s reading, as imports jumped 21.9% year-on-year to USD 13.4 billion, driven by a sharp increase in purchases of electronic products (+93.3%), particularly semiconductors (+125.8%), amid the ongoing global boom in AI demand. Imports also increased for mineral fuels (+35.6%) and cereal and cereal preparations (+2.5%). China accounted for the largest share of imports (31.7%), followed by South Korea (13.2%) and Indonesia (6.4%). Meanwhile, exports rose 7.6% to USD 7.9 billion, driven by higher sales of electronic products (+11.9%), machinery and transport equipment (+51.2%), other mineral products (+30.2%), and gold (+19.4%). The US remained the top export market, accounting for 17.2%, followed by Hong Kong (15.2%), Japan (13.1%), and China (11.5%).