The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that the country’s the trade deficit narrowed  in September as imports declined at a faster pace than exports.

The balance of trade in goods in the country recorded a deficit of $3.511 billion in September, lower than the $4.131 billion gap in August and the $4.828 billion deficit in the same period last year. 

A trade deficit signifies that the value of imports surpassed export receipts, whereas a trade surplus indicates higher export shipments than imports.

The value of exports declined 6.3 percent to $6.728 billion from $7.182 billion in the previous year and also slightly lower than the $6.702 billion recorded in August.

The most significant decreases were observed in electronic products, which fell $424.39 million, followed by other manufactured goods down $48.60 million, other mineral products lower by $36.54 million, coconut oil dropped $27.92 million, and miscellaneous manufactured articles down $24.32 million.

Of the total exports, manufactured goods contributed the largest share with $5.56 billion or 82.7 percent, followed by mineral products with $619.05 million or 9.2 percent, and total agro-based products with $393.27 million or 5.8 percent.

The United States of America emerged as the top destination for Philippine exports, with a value of $1.06 billion. It was closely followed by China with $1.05 billion, Japan with $898.94 million, Hong Kong with $836.17 million, and South Korea with $306.54 million.

Meanwhile, imports amounted to $10.239 billion in September, showing a decrease from $10.833 billion in August and a significant decline of 14.7 percent compared to the $12.011 billion in September 2022.

The most notable decrease in imports was seen in electronic products, which fell by $765.15 million. 

This was followed by mineral fuels, lubricants, and related materials down by $564.30 million, organic and inorganic chemicals down by $124.93 million, other food and live animals down by $99.81 million, and plastics down by $58.53 million.

Raw materials and intermediate goods accounted for the largest share of imports, totaling $3.60 billion or 35.2 percent, followed by capital goods with $2.99 billion or 29.2 percent, and consumer goods with $2.12 billion or 20.7 percent.

China is still the top source of imports with $2.63 billion, followed by Indonesia with $902.56 million, Thailand with $840.32 million, Japan with $833.15 million, and South Korea with $696.29 million.

The latest data revealed that the total trade for September amounted to $16.968 billion, which was lower than the $17.535 billion recorded in August and represented an 11.6 percent reduction compared to the $19.194 billion in the same month last year.