Foreign trade is the system by which countries exchange goods and services. Countries trade with each other to obtain things that are of better quality, less expensive or simply different from goods and services produced locally. The goods and services that are bought from other countries are called imports.

The region’s Free on Board (FOB) import value of commodities decreased by 92.8% from the amount of $83,750,712 in July 2016 to $6,056,160 in August 2016.

The region's total volume of imported commodities declined by 87.6% from 488,601.7 kg in July 2016 to 60,680.3 kg in August 2016.

Imports by Commodity

• In August 2016, imports on most commodities declined based from the July 2016 FOB value of imports except for Salt, Sulphur; earths and stone; plastering materials, lime and cement which increased to $139, and wadding, felt and nonwovens; special yarns; twine, cordage, ropes and cables and articles thereof valued at $205.
• Aircraft, spacecraft, and parts thereof was the major imported commodity in August 2016 with import value of $4,946,592 (81.7%). However, this decreased by 44% from $8,828,374 in July to $4,946,592 in August 2016.
• Plastics and articles thereof ranked second with imports value of $649,400, sharing 10.7% in the total imports of the region. Meanwhile, nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliance, parts thereof ranked third contributing $285,717 or a share of 4.7% in the total value of imports in the region. The top 3 imported commodities had an aggregate value of $5,881,709.
• Other imported commodities in August 2016 were electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof (1.4%), aluminum and articles thereof (0.6%), articles of stone, plaster, cement, asbestos, mica or similar materials (0.3), tools, implements, cutlery, spoons and forks, of base metal; (0.3%), rubber and articles thereof (0.2%), optical, photographic, cinematographic (0.1%), articles of leather; saddlery and harness; travel goods and, handbags and similar containers (0.0%), vehicles other than railway or tramway rollingstock (0.0%), copper and articles thereof (0.0%), printed books, newspapers, pictures and other products of the printing industry (0.0%), Wadding, felt and nonwovens; special yarns; twine, cordage, ropes and cables and articles thereof (0.0%), special woven fabrics; tufted textile fabrics; lace; tapestries; trimming; embroidery (0.0%). These commodities had an accumulated import value of $ 173,969 (2.9%).

Imports by Country of Origin

• In August 2016, People’s Republic of China, UK of Great Britain, and N. Ireland emerged as the new major sources of imported goods of the region, in addition to the United States of America. The total value of imports from these countries amounted to $4,524,841 (74.7%). Aircraft, spacecraft, and parts thereof was the top imported commodity from these countries.
• The region also imported goods from Japan (7.9%), Singapore (4.7%), Malaysia (4%), Taiwan (2.9%), Canada (0.01%), Netherlands (0.9%), France (0.9%), Costa Rica (0.8%), Poland (0.8%), Australia (0.5%), Israel (0.5%), Hongkong (0.4%), Germany (0.4%), Italy (0.3%), Switzerland (0.1%), Republic of Korea (0.1%), India (0.1%), Romania (0.0%), Thailand (0.0%). Imports from these countries contributed 25.3% to the total regional value of imported commodities.

APEC and Non-APEC Members

• About 87.4% of the region’s total import goods in August 2016 came from the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) member countries, namely United States of America (USA), Republic of China, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Canada, Hongkong, Republic of Korea, and Thailand.

• On the other hand, 12.6% or equivalent to $ 763,893 of the total value of imports createElement from non-APEC countries. This comprised 1,656 kg. in volume and with a share of 2.7% of the total imported commodities.
• Aircraft, spacecraft, and parts thereof was the major imported commodity of the country from the Non-APEC countries with total value of $ 2,013,207.00, and sharing 44.9% in the total value of imports from Non-APEC countries.

Technical Notes

Free on Board Value (FOB) - is the value of the goods free on board the carrier at the frontier of the exporting country. It includes inland freight, export duty and other expenses. In addition, the value of goods in the Philippine foreign trade statistics is FOB.

Country of Destination (Exports only) - it is the country where the goods are to be consumed, further processed, or manufactured.

Country of Origin (Imports only) - it is the country where the goods are mined, grown, or manufactured or where each foreign material used or incorporated in a good underwent a change in tariff classification indicating a substantial transformation under the applicable rule of origin for the good.

Exports - the goods and services that are sold to other countries.

Imports - the goods and services that a country buys from other countries.

PSCC (Philippine Standard Commodity Classification) - is used to classify the imported commodities at the most detailed level for statistical purposes.