RP exports down 0.6% in February

RP exports down 0.6% in February

MANILA: Weaker electronics demand pushed Philippines
merchandise exports down 0.6 percent to US$2.98 billion in
February, ending 15 months of consecutive growth, the government
said on Tuesday.

This brought total exports in the first two months of 2005 to
$6.26 billion, a 7.2 percent increase over the same period last
year.

In February, electronics exports dropped 0.9 percent to $1.96
billion compared with a year earlier, the National Statistics
Office said.

Shipments of garments, the second largest export category,
fell 9.2 percent to $168 million.

By destination, 20.6 percent of February's exports went to
Japan, 17.2 percent to the United States, 9.6 percent to the
Netherlands and 8.5 percent to China.

Among the top-four markets, exports to Japan and China posted
double-digit growth, while those to the United States and the
Netherlands declined.-- AFP