Philippine exports decreased for the tenth consecutive month in January, defying economists’ expectations for an increase, preliminary figures from the Philippine Statistical Authority showed Thursday.
Exports fell 3.9 percent year-over-year in January, faster than the 3.0 percent decline in the previous month. Economists had expected a 0.4 percent increase for the month.
The negative growth was mainly brought about by the decreases in five major commodities out of the top ten commodities for the month, the agency said.
Exports of articles of apparel and clothing accessories tumbled the most by 46.2 percent in January, followed by chemicals with 34.6 percent decline.
Meanwhile, shipments of electronic products, accounting for 51.1 percent of the total exports, climbed by 5.0 percent from January 2015.
Japan remained country’s top destination of exports during January, comprising 22.7 percent share to total exports. It grew by 7.7 percent from a year ago.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com