BOC: Over half of country's ports exceed 2015 target

MANILA, Philippines - Despite missing its collection target last year, the Bureau of Customs said more than half the country's ports exceeded their collection targets.

In a statement on Monday, the bureau, which traditionally accounts for a fifth of state revenues, said seven of its 12 ports beat their yearly collection goals in 2015.

Leading the way are the ports of Iloilo and Cebu, which surpassed their targets by nearly P1 billion.

The Cebu port, in particular, collected the highest amount at P16.529 billion, up by P924 million from its P15.605-billion target.

Its Iloilo counterpart, meanwhile, breached its P1.349-billion goal by contributing P2.308 billion. The Davao port collected P598 million more with the second biggest haul of P11.56 billion. 

Another billion-peso collector was the Port of Clark in Pampanga, the Customs said. The port raked in P1.284 billion, ahead of its P1.160-billion target for 2015.

The Port of Legazpi, on the other hand, saw its take rise to more than double its target at P324.2 million. The goal was set at P147.8 million last year.

The Port of Zamboanga collected P180.6 million, while its Surigao counterpart raised P18.7 million. They beat their goals of P66 million and P12.2 million, respectively.

Last month, the bureau conceded it did not only miss its P436.5-billion target, but also had its total revenues fall below the previous year's level. 

The agency collected P366.9 billion last year, down 0.6 percent year-on-year, data showed.

For this year, Customs Commissioner Alberto Lina said last month the Department of Finance decided to keep the bureau's target of P498.7 billion despite the slump in oil prices.

The country imports bulk of its oil requirements. Lower oil prices result into lower valuations where Customs duties are based.