Electronics exports reach all-time high in 2021

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s electronics exports hit an all-time high last year amid strong demand for new technologies, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation Inc. (SEIPI) said.

In a statement, SEIPI said the country’s total electronics exports reached $45.92 billion last year, 12.9 percent higher than the adjusted $40.67 billion in 2020.

Last year’s growth was also higher than SEIPI’s projected 10 percent increase for electronics exports.

“New technologies used for IoT (Internet of Things), AI (artificial intelligence), work from home, telemedicine, Industry 4.0, etc. drove demand,” SEIPI president Dan Lachica said in a Viber message.

Electronics sectors that posted growth in exports last year were telecommunications (138 percent), medical or industrial instrumentation (37.49 percent), electronic data processing (29.51 percent), consumer electronics (19.45 percent), office equipment (19.32 percent), control and instrumentation (12.92 percent) and components or devices or semiconductors (7.37 percent).

For December alone, the country’s electronics exports went up slightly to $3.92 billion from $3.90 billion in the same month in 2020.

Electronics sectors which saw exports climb in December were telecommunications (183.97 percent), automotive electronics (39 percent), office equipment (29.70 percent) and semiconductors (1.61 percent).

Top destinations for Philippine electronics exports in December last year were Hong Kong, the United States, China, Singapore and Japan.

For this year, SEIPI is forecasting a 10 percent growth in electronics exports.

SEIPI chairman Glenn Everett earlier said the projection depends on improvements to inbound and outbound logistics flows, supply chain, health of the population as well as the reopening of the country.

As new technologies emerge, he is hopeful the country’s semiconductor and electronics industry can attract new investments.