Exporters see ‘fighting chance’ in meeting 2023 sales target

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport) said the country could meet its exports target for the year, citing that shipments are recovering slowly but surely.

“I think we have a fighting chance to reach the target,” Philexport president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. told reporters in an interview.

“But hopefully the Israel problem won’t escalate as Ukraine’s problem is persisting until now,” he said.

Under the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP) 2023-2028, the country is targeting total exports to reach $126.8 billion this year.

Ortiz said the country’s exports are recovering.

“It’s recovering. Increasing, but not as fast. Slowly but surely it is increasing but not as fast as we would like it to increase,” he said.

He lamented that some of the challenges the country’s exports sector is experiencing are out of its control such as the movement of fuel prices.

“But we’re doing better. In Europe, most of the countries involved in Ukraine are already suffering depression...Europe, Italy, Germany,they’re all suffering already,” he said.

Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the country’s export sales totaled $6.70 billion in August, a 4.2-percent increase from $6.43 billion in the same period last year.

However, year-to-date exports registered at $47.8 billion, a 6.6-percent decline from $51.18 billion in the same period last year.

In June, the Department of Trade and Industry launched the PDEP 2023-2028 which targets to grow the country’s merchandise and service exports to $240.5 billion by 2028.

The plan puts export development as a national agenda and focuses on addressing binding constraints to export competitiveness, expanding the country’s export capacities, and seizing growth opportunities in the international market.

In addition, the PDEP also seeks to undertake an industry development-centric approach that will make the Philippines a competitive global player.