PEZA won't meet 11% export growth target

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) said it will be difficult for them to meet their yearend target of 11-percent growth in exports as the sale of electronics in the international market remains weak.

PEZA spokesman Elmer San Pascual said it may be difficult to achieve the 11-percent export growth target because of weak global demand for electronics. “But we remain optimistic that we can regain exports in the last quarter of the year.” He said it may still be achievable if exports go up in the last few months.

As of August this year, exports stood at $27.65 billion, slightly up by only three percent from the $26.83 billion recorded during the same period a year ago.

Earlier, the local exports industry announced they will be cutting the export targets in half after posting a dismal five-percent decline for the first semester. Philippine Exporters Confederation (Philexport) president Sergio Ortiz Luis estimated that instead of the projected 10-percent growth target this year, exports will likely grow by only five percent.

“The average from January to July didn’t even hit four percent,” Ortiz Luis said. He said the exports industry was relying on electronics exports to pick up but it did not recover.

In fact, he said that if the downward trend continues, even the five percent growth may be difficult to achieve. At the very least, he said export will grow by three percent. “Based on the data available now it may be three percent to five percent,” he said.

Ortiz Luis said they expect improvement in the second semester export figures. “The problem in Europe and the Middle East wont probably last that long,” he explained. “If the market improves then next year will be better.”