Trade and Industry in the Philippines Results in a Negative Trade Balance

Trade industry means an industry involving physical labor and characterized by mechanical skill and training such as rendering a period of instruction reasonably necessary. Despite the impact of the COVID-19 Delta wave in the second half of 2021, GDP growth for calendar 2021 rebounded to 5.6% y/y. Strong growth momentum has continued in early 2022, with GDP growth of 8.3% y/y in the first quarter of 2022.

In 2020, Philippines was the number 32 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 39 in total exports, the number 34 in total imports, the number 132 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 39 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI).

In August 2021 Philippines exported $6.54B and imported $10.6B, resulting in a negative trade balance of $4.05B. Between August 2020 and August 2021 the exports of Philippines have increased by $1.04B (19%) from $5.5B to $6.54B, while imports increased by $2.8B (35.9%) from $7.8B to $10.6B.

Resources: https://www.lawinsider.com/dictionary/trade-industry https://oec.world/en/profile/country/phl#:~:text=Imports%20The%20top%20imports%20of,and%20Indonesia%20(%246.34B). https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/mi/research-analysis/philippines-economy-resilient-despite-global-headwinds-jun22.html