The National Statistics Office (NSO) will adopt a new coverage of electronic products to ensure the consistency and comparability of statistics used by several agencies in the country. The new coverage was approved by the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), through NSCB Resolution No. 12, series of 2002 dated 5 June 2002. The new coverage of electronics exports is the result of an interagency work participated in by the NSO, the Bureau of Exports and Trade Promotion (BETP) of the Department of Trade and Industry, the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries of the Philippines, Incorporated (SEIPI), and the NSCB.

Presented here are the revised tables on the country’s merchandise export performance for the past four years (1999 to February 2003). Subsequent press releases on exports will follow the new coverage and will start with the March 2003 exports figures which will be released on May 5, 2003.

Coverage

The new coverage of exports of electronic products consists of 359 commodities (Philippine Standard Commodity Classification) while the old series covers only 40 commodities. The expanded coverage has nine (9) major classifications namely; Components/Devices (Semiconductors), Electronic Data Processing, Office Equipment, Consumer Electronics, Telecommunication, Communication/Radar, Control and Instrumentation, Medical/Industrial Instrumentation, and Automotive Electronics. The old series, on the other hand, consisted of only four (4) major groups which are: Microcircuits, Semiconductors, Other Electronic Components, and Input/Output/Peripheral Units.

1. Components/Devices (Semiconductors)

The group consists of 84 items and covers commodities which are used to make integrated circuits (IC) such as printed circuit board (PCB), converters, ballasts, inductors, resistors, switches, valves and tubes, transistors, diodes, capacitors, and other semiconductor devices.

2. Electronic Data Processing

This group has 16 items and covers commodities like automatic data processing machines, digital processing unit, input/output (I/O) units, magnetic or optical reader, and others.

3. Office Equipment

This group has 20 items and covers commodities like automatic typewriters, word processing machines, electronic calculating machines, accounting machines, cash registers, and electrostatic photocopying apparatus.

4. Consumer Electronics

This group has 94 items and covers commodities like video tape rewinders, television receivers, video monitors, projectors and cameras, sound reproducing machines, and others.

5. Telecommunications

This group has 49 items and covers commodities like telephone sets, fax machines, telephonic/telegraphic switching machine and parts, communication cables, parts/accessories of other telephonic/telegraphic apparatus, and others

6. Communication and Radar

This group has 20 items and covers commodities like transmission apparatus, cellular phones, television cameras, radar apparatus, radio navigational and remote control apparatus, antennas, among others.

7. Control and Instrumentation

This group has 39 items and covers commodities like microscope and diffraction apparatus, spectrometers, spectrophotometers, spectographs, optical radiation instruments, pressure regulators and controllers, cathodes ray, oscilloscopes, multimeters, and the like.

8. Medical/Industrial Instrumentation

This group has 30 items and covers commodities like electrocardiographs, ultrasonic scanning apparatus, ultraviolet apparatus used/based on x-rays, and other x-ray high tension generators.

9. Automotive Electronics

This group has seven (7) items and covers commodities like horns and sirens and other electrical sound signaling appliances, brakes and servo-brakes, and other electrical lighting.

Please refer to Annex 1 for the new coverage of export of electronic products.
 

Highlights of the Performance of Exports of Electronic Products Using the New Coverage

January and February 2003

The overall share of electronic products to total export was registered at 69.2 percent in January 2003 at $1.862 billion, and 65.7 percent in February 2003 at $1.789 billion. Components/devices (semiconductors) had the biggest share among the subgroups under electronic products. It accounted for 70.9 percent in January and amounting to $1.320 billion, and 71.4 percent ($1.277 billion) in February. This was followed by electronic data processing which had a share of 24.2 percent in January and 22.9 percent in February. All other subgroups under electronic product had a share of less than one percent in January except for consumer electronics with 1.5 percent share, and communication/radar with 1.2 percent share. Similarly in February, all other subgroups posted a share of less than one percent except for consumer electronics with 1.7 percent share, communication/radar, and automotive electronics with 1.4 percent share.

In January 2003, FOB value of exports of electronic products registered an annual increase of 1.1 percent. However, an annual decline of 3.3 percent was recorded in February. Among the subgroups, the highest annual growth rate in January was posted in office equipment at 40.3 percent, while the biggest negative rate of 68.2 percent was posted in control and instrumentation. Except for components/devices (semiconductors) and office equipment, all the other groups under electronic products reflected negative year-on-year rates in February 2003.

The biggest portion of electronic products amounting to $284.16 million (15.3 percent) was exported to Japan in January. In February, the biggest portion (15.1 percent) amounting to $270.13 million was exported to the United States of America (USA).

2002

The share of electronic products to total exports in 2002 accounted for 69.1 percent with an FOB value placed at $24.322 billion. It showed a year-on-year change of 12.5 percent over the 2001 value of $21.615 billion. The share of components/devices (semiconductors) for 2002 ranged from a low of 45.5 percent recorded in December to a high of 50.9 percent in May. In terms of reported FOB value, the highest was registered in September amounting to $1.524 billion, while the lowest was pegged at $1.237 billion in February. Semiconductors dominated the electronic products for both groupings. It accounted for 55.4 percent in the old grouping and 69.5 percent in the new grouping. This was followed by electronic data processing machines and parts with a 24.2-percent share to total electronics for 2002. The highest reported FOB value was in November with $583.09 million, while the lowest was $432.50 million in June. Consumer electronics’ share to total exports of electronic products was 2.0 percent in 2002. It went up by 5.3 percent over its 2001 value. Communication radar’s share to total exports of electronic products was 1.6 percent. Its FOB value of $43.87 million was highest in November, and the lowest in March at $22.81 million. It went down by 3.0 percent compared to its 2001 value. Automotive electronics registered an FOB value of $317.86 million in 2002. It accounted for 1.3 percent of the total exports of electronic products. Its highest FOB value was registered in the month of November ($30.86 million), and the lowest was in December ($19.43 million). The shares of the other groups to total exports of electronic products were: telecommunications equipment and parts with 0.8 percent; office equipment and parts with 0.5 percent; and control and instrumentation with 0.1 percent. Medical and industrial instrumentation equipment registered the least share as it accounted for only 0.01 percent. However, the group showed the highest year-on-year change of 70.1 percent over its 2001 value.

The top five countries of destination for exports of electronic products were USA which accounted for 19.5 percent of the total electronic products ($4.735 billion); Japan (excluding Okinawa), 13.9 percent ($3.390 billion); The Netherlands, 11.5 percent ($2.792 billion); Taiwan, 8.9 percent ($2.155 billion); and Singapore, 8.7 percent ($2.120 billion).

Of the nine groups under electronic products, the biggest chunk of semiconductors (16.0 percent percent), electronic data processing stuff (26.3 percent), consumer electronics (37.0 percent) and communication/radar (54.0 percent) were exported to the US. Japan was the country's biggest market for office equipment (16.7 percent), control and instrumentation (71.8 percent), and medical/industrial instrumentation, (72.6 percent). The biggest portion of Philippine export on automotive electronics went to Germany at 48.7 percent.

List of Tables:

Table 1.    Export of Electronic Products, 2002 to February 2003
                (Old and New Coverage)

Table 2.    Philippine Export of Electronic Products, 2000 to February 2003
                (New Coverage)

Table 3.    Philippine Export of Electronic Products by Country, 2002 to February 2003
                (New Coverage)

Table 4.    Monthly Philippine Exports by Commodity, 1999 to 2003 (New Coverage)

Table 5.    Percent Share of Monthly Philippine Exports by Commodity, 1999 to 2003
                (New Coverage)

Table 6.    Annual Growth Rate of Philippine Exports by Commodity, 2000 to 2003
                (New Coverage)

Table 7.    Monthly Growth Rate of Philippine Exports by Commodity, 2000 to 2003
                (New Coverage)

Annex 1.    Export of Electronic Products (New Coverage)