TRADE deficit narrowed in August as imports fell and exports gained modestly, easing external pressures but underscoring uneven demand trends.
The gap in goods trade shrank 19.4 percent to US$3.54 billion from a year earlier, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025. That came as imports dropped 4.9 percent to $10.6 billion, led by declines in mineral fuels, metal ores, and cereals. By contrast, exports climbed 4.6 percent to $7.06 billion, buoyed by stronger shipments of electronics, gold, and other mineral products.
The pullback in imports snapped two months of expansion, suggesting weaker industrial demand and softer energy purchases. Electronics, however, remained the country’s top import item at $2.74 billion, accounting for more than a quarter of inbound shipments. Raw materials and intermediate goods made up the largest import share at $3.82 billion, followed by capital goods at $3.24 billion.
On the export side, electronics also led growth, bringing in $3.87 billion, or nearly 55 percent of the total. Year-to-date, exports rose 12.6 percent to $55.7 billion, while imports increased 5.1 percent to $88.08 billion, keeping the cumulative trade gap wide.
Hong Kong was the Philippines’ top export market in August at $1.19 billion, followed by the US and Japan. China remained the country’s largest source of imports at $3.19 billion, supplying nearly a third of the total.
Trade with Asia-Pacific partners continued to dominate, with APEC economies accounting for more than 80 percent of both exports and imports. East Asia alone contributed half of outbound shipments and just over half of inbound purchases.
The August figures marked the first annual decline in total trade since April. Overall external trade slipped 1.3 percent to $17.67 billion, after recording double-digit growth in July.
The latest data suggest external headwinds remain for Southeast Asia’s second-most populous economy, even as electronics exports provide some lift. Analysts said the trajectory of fuel imports and global demand for semiconductors will be key to trade performance heading into the fourth quarter. / KOC