The country’s September exports fell 7.6 percent, though the overall external trade in goods increased by 3 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday.

The PSA, in a press briefing, said the Philippines’ total export sales in September 2024 amounted to $6.26 billion, down from the $6.77 billion total export sales in the same month of the previous year.

“In August 2024, the total export sales registered an annual increase of 0.3 percent, while it posted an annual decline of 6.6 percent in September 2023,” said Claire Dennis Mapa, undersecretary of the PSA.

Mapa said that the export of electronic products gained the highest annual decrement in the value of exports in September 2024 at $945.82 million, followed by copper concentrates with an annual decrease of $41.68 million; and cathodes and sections of cathodes, of refined copper with an annual decline of $21.80 million.

Electronic products continued to be the country’s top exports in September.

On the other hand, the year-to-date annual total value of exports, which is from January to September 2024, amounted to $55.67 billion, representing an annual increase of 1.1 percent from the year-to-date annual total export value of $55.08 billion in January to September 2023.

“By commodity group, electronic products continued to be the country’s top exports in September 2024 with total earnings of US$3.15 billion or 50.3 percent of the country’s total exports during the period. This was followed by other manufactured goods with an export value of $506.69 million (8.1 percent), and other mineral products with $330.23 million (5.3 percent),” Mapa said.

Meanwhile, the country’s total external trade in goods in September 2024 amounted to $17.60 billion, a 3 percent increase from the $17.09 billion total external trade in the same period of the previous year.

In August 2024, the total external trade in goods recorded an annual increment of 1.9 percent, while an annual decline of 11.3 percent was registered in September 2023.