In June 2025, the Philippines experienced a reduction in its trade deficit, which fell to USD 3.95 billion from USD 4.34 billion in June of the previous year. This improvement is largely attributed to a 26.1% year-on-year increase in exports, which totaled USD 7.02 billion. This growth was fueled by a significant rise in electronic product sales, with notable increases in electronic data processing (up 54.1%), office equipment (up 39.4%), and semiconductors (up 24.6%). Additionally, gold exports surged by an impressive 130.9%, responding to heightened global demand as a safe haven amid trade tensions following US tariff implementations. The United States was the leading export destination, accounting for 17.3% of total exports, followed by Hong Kong at 15.2%, and Japan at 13.9%.
In contrast, imports grew by 10.8%, reaching USD 10.97 billion. This rise was driven by heightened purchases of telecommunications and electrical machinery, which shot up by 69.6%, and transport equipment, which increased by 66.1%. China remained the principal source of imports, comprising 28.2% of the total, with Japan and South Korea following at 7.9% and 7.8%, respectively.
For the first half of the year, the overall trade deficit decreased to USD 23.97 billion, compared to USD 25.06 billion during the same period in 2024.
