MANILA, Philippines – Export earnings from abaca fiber and other manufactures fell by 10.5 percent in the first half of the year on lower demand for pulp, cordage and raw fiber.
Data from the Fiber Industry Development Authority (FIDA) showed that export earnings for the first six months of the year fell to $63.9 million from $71.5 million in the same period last year.
Export earnings from pulp, which comprised 76.7 percent of the total, fell by 5.9 percent to $49 million this year from $52 million a year ago.
Earnings from cordage—12.1 percent of the total—fell by 6.6 percent to $7.8 million in the first semester from $8.3 million in the same period last year.
Earnings from raw fiber—3.9 percent—fell by 63.3 percent to $2.5 million from $6.8 million.
On the other hand, export earnings from fabrics, which comprised 1.1 percent of the total, rose by 32.4 percent to $694,333 from $524,603. Earnings from fibercrafts - 6.2 percent of the total—rose by 4.7 percent to $3.9 million from $3.7 million in the same period last year.
Abaca fiber is used for making tea bags, casing of meat sausages, surgical masks and cigarette paper.
Philippine abaca products are sold to the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, China, Taiwan and South Korea, among others.