The country’s agricultural trade continued to grow in August, but at a significantly slower pace than the previous month, with both exports and imports registering weaker gains.
Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that total agricultural trade reached $2.33 billion in August, reflecting an annual increase of 0.9 percent.
In contrast, July saw a 14.5-percent gain at $2.53 billion, while August 2024 total trade reached $2.3 billion, marking a 5.1-percent increase.
Agricultural exports in August rose to $723.47 million, up by 12.3 percent from $644.14 million in the same month last year, and accounted for roughly 10 percent of the country’s total exports.
‘The top 10 commodity groups in terms of value of agricultural exports contributed $707.53 million or 97.8 percent to the total agricultural export revenue in August,’ the PSA said, noting that the combined agricultural export value of these top commodities posted an annual increase of 16.3 percent during the month.
‘Among the commodity groups, edible fruit and nuts; peel of citrus fruit or melons which was valued at $243.23 million comprised the largest share of 33.6 percent to the total agricultural exports in August,’ it added.
The Philippines exported $70.88 million worth of agricultural products to Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries in August, accounting for 7.5 percent of total exports to the region.
Malaysia emerged as the top buyer, taking in $38.26 million or more than half of the country’s agricultural exports to ASEAN during the month.
As for Philippine imports, the value of farm goods brought in reached $1.61 billion, representing a 15.2-percent share of the country’s total imports in August.
It registered a decrease of 3.5 percent from the $1.67 billion worth of agricultural imports in August 2024.
‘Among the major commodity groups, cereals accounted for the largest share worth $311.09 million or 19.4 percent of the total value of agricultural imports in August,’ the PSA said.
The country’s agricultural imports from ASEAN member countries in August amounted to $672.15 million, accounting for 23 percent of total imports from the region.
Vietnam was the top supplier, providing $189.39 million or 28.2 percent of the Philippines’ total agricultural imports from the regional bloc during the month.