Philippines’ total external trade up by 3 pct in September

MANILA, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) — The Philippines’ total external trade in goods increased by 3 percent in September 2024 to 17.60 billion U.S. dollars from 17.09 billion dollars in September 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Wednesday.
Of the total external trade in September 2024, the agency said 64.4 percent were imported goods, while the remaining 35.6 percent were exported goods.
The PSA said the balance of trade in goods or the difference between export and import value in September 2024 amounted to -5.09 billion dollars, indicating a trade deficit with an annual increase of 43.4 percent.
China was the Philippines’ largest supplier of imported goods, valued at 2.84 billion dollars or 25 percent of the country’s total imports in September this year.
The United States contributed the highest export value in September, with 1.08 billion dollars, or 17.3 percent of the total exports. ■