The Philippines will release March trade balance and import data on 26 May. The trade balance is expected to have narrowed to a deficit of USD 400mn, from a deficit of USD 837mn in February. Export growth improved in March to 2.1% y/y from a decline of 3% in February, which likely helped reduce the trade deficit. Standard Chartered notes:
- We expect a pick-up in external demand over the rest of the year, which should also fuel demand for intermediate goods.
- We expect higher growth in electronic imports to have supported March import growth – we forecast 5.3% y/y of overall import growth, versus 13.4% in February.
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