Preliminary Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showed that merchandise exports in June inched up 0.8 per cent year-on-year to $4.91 billion, bringing first-half exports to $31.04 billion, up 13.6 per cent.

Imports fell by 2.5 per cent year-on-year to $7.06 billion in June, although the total for the first six months was still up by 9.6 per cent year-on-year to $44.22 billion.

In June alone, total trade fell 1.2 per cent year-on-year to $11.97 billion, while trade-in-goods deficit narrowed to $2.15 billion from $2.37 billion a year ago. The lacklustre trade performance in June reversed the double-digit increase in both exports and imports in May.

At the end of the first half, total merchandise trade jumped by 11.2 per cent to $75.26 billion, with the trade-in-goods deficit widening to $13.17 billion from $12.99 billion last year.

“We expect Philippine trade to recover, as the global economic recovery is seen to be on firmer footing in the second half of the year,” said Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia.

“In tapping new export markets, the country can take advantage of its European Union-Generalised System of Preferences Plus (GSP+) preferential status,” said Pernia, who is also the Neda chief, referring to the tax perks given to Philippine products in the EU.

“In light of our hosting of the Asean Summit this year, our country is in a better position to push for a reduction in non-tariff barriers within the region,” Pernia added. He claimed that non-tariff barriers to intra regional trade rose from 1,634 to 5,975 between 2000 and 2015, even as the Asean integration into one economic community was in full swing.

Neda noted that the growth in exports to Asean and the EU of 4.8 per cent and 3.9 per cent, respectively, in June, “cushioned the decline in traditional markets such as the US (down 8.7 per cent), Japan (down 9 per cent) and China (down 2.4 per cent).”

“For Philippine imports, growth in Asean (up 4.5 per cent) and the EU (up 0.5 per cent) helped offset the decline in imports from the US (down 8.2 per cent), China (down 3.7 per cent) and Taiwan (down 33.1 per cent)” in June, Neda added.

Manufacturing growth, as measured by the Volume of Production Index (VoPI), slowed to 8.1 per cent in June from 9.8 per cent a year ago, the PSA’s Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries showed.