Agri trade deficit narrows 26.9% in December

THE DEFICIT in the agricultural goods trade narrowed 26.9% in December to $668.35 million, according to preliminary data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The PSA said the deficit in December decreased from $913.97 million a year earlier.

Agricultural exports in December rose 19.3% year on year to $884.77 million, accounting for 12.7% of total exports. As a share of the $2.44 billion in two-way trade in farm products, exports accounted for 36.29%.

Imports of agricultural commodities in December dipped 6.2% year on year to $1.55 billion, accounting for 14.8% of overall imports.

Two-way agricultural trade in December grew 1.7% year on year.

The strong performance in agricultural exports and the decline in imports in the second half of 2025 helped narrow the full-year trade deficit by 5.6% to $11.06 billion.

The decline in imports reflected the impact of a freeze on rice imports that was in force in late 2025.

The PSA said exports of edible fruit and nuts, including peels of citrus fruits and melons, grew 77.2% year on year to $329.72 million in December, accounting for 37.2% of agricultural exports.

Exports of animal, vegetable, or microbial fats and oils and their cleavage products; prepared edible fats; and animal or vegetable waxes declined 8.9% year on year to $270.07 million in December, accounting for 30.5% of agricultural exports.

Agricultural shipments to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in December hit $97.05 million, with top buyer Malaysia accounting for $58.09 million or 60% of the total.

Exports to the Netherlands, the Philippines’ top destination for agricultural commodities in the European Union (EU), amounted to $154.41 million or 70.06% of Philippine agricultural exports to the region.

Among the major commodity groups, cereals accounted for the largest share of agricultural imports in December, totaling $234.18 million or 15.1%. The value of cereal exports slid 34.0% during the month, following the four-month rice import ban that started in September.

Indonesia was the leading supplier of agricultural products to the Philippines within ASEAN, accounting for $146.61 million or 30.4% of total imports from the region.

The top agricultural goods imported from ASEAN were animal, vegetable, or microbial fats and oils, and their cleavage products; prepared edible fats; and animal or vegetable waxes.

Within the EU, Spain was the Philippines’ top supplier of agricultural commodities, with imports valued at $24.97 million, or 19.57% of total shipments from the region.

The top agricultural commodities from the EU were meat and edible meat offal. — Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel