MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ trade deficit is expected to widen further this year amid weaker exports and stronger imports, according to Dutch financial giant ING.

ING senior economist Nicholas Mapa said a bigger-than-expected drop in exports and surprise rise in capital imports have resulted in a deeper trade deficit for November last year.

“This trend should persist going into 2024, with exports expected to struggle amid still weak global demand for basic electronics components while imports could continue to grow,” he added.

Mapa said exports fell more than expected at 13.7 percent in November, with the important electronics sub-sector dropping by 24.7 percent on soft global demand for basic semiconductor components.

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https://www.philstar.com/business/2024/01/22/2327490/trade-gap-expected-widen-further