Philippines Imports Drop the Most Since 2020

2024-05-08 01:25 By Farida Husna 1 min. read

Imports to the Philippines plunged by 20.0% yoy in March 2024, the second time of fall so far this year and the steepest decline since July 2020, to a 13-month low of USD 9.31 billion, as domestic demand deteriorated further amid elevated cost pressure and high borrowing costs.

Purchases declined for all components: electronic products (-14.8%), mineral fuels, lubricants (-18.1%), metalliferous ores and metal scrap (-74.6%), industrial machinery and equipment (-31.8%), iron & steel (-35.4%), plastics in primary and non-primary forms (-17.1%), transport equipment (-8.9%), and cereal preparation (-7.7%).

Imports fell from China (-12.1%), Japan (-18.3%), the US (-8.1%), South Korea (-10.6%), Hong Kong (-20.3%), Indonesia (-39.5%), Thailand (-20.5%), Vietnam (-16.3%), Taiwan (-41.9%), and the ASEAN countries (-24.8%); while rising from Germany (22.7%) and the EU (20.5%).

During the first three months of the year, purchases fell 7.6% from the same period in 2023 to USD 29.22 billion.



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