Phl to miss $120 B export target

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said today that the Philippines is unlikely to hit its export target of $120 billion by 2016.

Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo disclosed that the DTI has already scaled down its export target to about $100 billion.

"We still need to set an ambitious but a more realistic target. The target of $120 billion is not achievable by any means, unless there is a miracle," Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo told reporters during the Philippine Economic Briefing held in Manila today.

Despite the continuous increase in merchandise and services exports, Domingo said the export target of $120 billion is "way off the charts" considering that the Philippines ended 2013 with only $53.97 billion worth of merchandise exports.

"Even if you add (revenues from) the services sector at $17 billion, the total (for 2013) would be slightly over $70 billion and we only have less than three years go (to achieve the goal)," he said.

To hit the 2016 target of $120 billion, Domingo said export revenues would have to grow by $18 billion annually until 2016. This, he said, would be difficult to achieve.

Government data showed that Philippine export revenues inched up by 3.61 percent on year to $53.97 billion in 2013 on the back of higher shipments of forest, agro-based and mineral products.

In December alone, the NSO said, export earnings jumped by 15.8 percent on year to $4.59 billion due to higher shipments of electronic products, minerals, woodcrafts and furniture.

Data also showed that earnings from electronic products - the top export product of the Philippines - declined by 3.97 percent on year to $21.82 billion in 2013.