Exports grew for the first time in six months in May, led by the recovery of the electronics sector, Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual said Friday.
Pascual said that merchandise exports rose 1.9 percent to $6.44 billion in May from $6.32 billion a year ago, based on preliminary data from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
It was the first monthly growth of exports since November 2022.
The DTI said the Philippines outpaced the export growth of Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam in May.
“The rebound in export sales for the first time since November last year could be attributed to the electronics exports which have picked up by 6.7 percent after plummeting since December last year. This makes us optimistic that the slump has bottomed out and we can expect for a sustained growth in electronics exports in line with our overall export growth target under the new Philippine Export Development Plan,” Pascual said.
The sub-sectors of the electronics industry recorded double digit growth rates in May, particularly components and devices or semiconductors (15.91 percent), other electronics (34.53 percent) and consumer electronics (27.28 percent).
Quicker improvements in operating conditions across the country’s manufacturing sector were observed in May supported by faster growth in both orders and output. According to S&P Global Philippines, the Philippines’ PMI rose to 52.2 from 51.4 in April 2023.
“We hope to sustain the growth of our PMI as we prioritize addressing challenges to create a more stable and sustainable manufacturing industry, which we recognize as critical in order to increase the country’s competitiveness in the global market and maintain its position as a trusted supplier of goods,” Pascual said.
He said 12 of 48 Philippine export commodity groups continue to drive the resurgence of the country’s export sector, reflecting consistent increases in export sales compared to the years of 2022, 2021, 2020 and pre-pandemic average from 2017 to 2019.
These export commodity groups include electronics, other mineral products, coconut oil, gold, copper concentrates, pineapple and pineapple products, travel goods and handbags, processed tropical fruits, seaweeds and carrageenan, Christmas decor, fertilizers and nickel, he said.
The electronics sector remained the Philippines’ biggest export, accounting for 57.5 percent of total exports in May 2023 with export sales value of $3.7 billion.
This month’s top electronic exports are components/devices (semiconductors), electronic data processing, consumer electronics, and control and instrumentation. Electronic exports increased by $231.53 million compared to the same period last year.