Coco exports down

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine coconut exports from January to July this year declined by 40.2 percent, figures released yesterday by the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) showed.

Volumewise, coconut exports reached only 895,215.55 metric tons, in the first seven months this year, way below the 1,497,016.89 MT, registered in the same period last year.

In dollar terms, however, the value of Philippine coconut exports jumped 34.74 percent to $1,224,414,795, as prices firmed up dramatically.

According to PCA administrator Euclides G. Forbes in an interview yesterday at the 25th National Coconut Week Celebration and 10th Coconut Festival at the Mega Trade Hall in Mandaluyong, the lower export volume is due to the delayed effect of the El Niño phenomenon last year and the high production in the past three years.

On the other hand, export value, improved as demand from the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan has increased.

The value of coconut oil exports increased 30.78 percent to $923,455,398 as average prices of coconut oil last year to $1,867.60 per MT this year went up from $813.37/MT.

Forbes is optimistic that with the end of the delayed effect of El Niño in the middle of this year, production may still hit the one billion-metric ton volume, with value hitting between $2.3 billion and $2.5 billion.