The Philippines' total external trade in goods declined 9.2 per cent in September from a year earlier to 14.14 billion US dollars, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has said.
This was lower than its previous month's annual drop of 17.9 per cent and higher than the 3.5 per cent drop in September 2019, the PSA said in a statement on Wednesday.
Of the total external trade in September 2020, the PSA said 56.0 per cent were imported goods, and the rest exported goods, reports Xinhua.
The PSA said the balance of trade in goods, or the difference between the value of export and import, in September 2020 amounted to -$1.71 billion, representing a trade deficit with an annual decline of 49.9 per cent.
By major trading partners, exports to China comprised the highest export value amounting to $1.22 billion, or a share of 19.6 per cent to the total exports during the month.
China was also the country's biggest supplier of imported goods valued at $2.01 billion, or 25.3 per cent of the total imports in September 2020, the PSA said.