Global recovery to jumpstart Philippine exports of electronics

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is expected to ride on the strong recovery of the electronics sector in Asia-Pacific amid better demand as economies rebound from the pandemic.

In a report, market intelligence firm IHS Markit said global demand for electronic products would strengthen for the rest of the year.

This is due to the improving global economic recovery for 2021 as COVID-19 vaccines are progressively rolled out across countries.

“In the first half of 2021, global electronics demand has rebounded significantly from the lows of the first half of 2020, when lockdowns disrupted production and consumer spending,” IHS Markit AsPac chief economist Rajiv Biswas said.

Last year, Asian electronic production suffered severe supply disruptions and slumping global demand due to the pandemic and lockdowns.

The electronics manufacturing industry is an important part of the manufacturing export sector for many Asian economies, including South Korea, mainland China, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Electronics is the Philippines’ top export, accounting for almost 60 percent of total shipments.

Latest data showed that total exports for March went up as electronic products registered a solid 25 percent increase to $3.6 billion.

The headline IHS Markit Global Electronics purchasing managers’ index (PMI) also rose to 61.2 in April from 60.4 in March, pointing to the largest improvement in global electronics sector operating conditions for 21 years.

“The impact of the pandemic has accelerated the pace of digital transformation due to the global shift to working remotely, which has boosted demand for electronic devices such as computers, printers and mobile phones,” Biswas said.

“The easing of lockdowns in many countries has also triggered a rebound in consumer spending, helping to boost demand for a wide range of consumer electronics,” he said.