Philippines Sector Brief – Electronics

I. Quick Facts
• The semiconductors and electronics industry is the largest contributor to the Philippine
manufacturing sector
• In 2015, electronics products accounted for 68.8% of the total imports of the Philippines which amounts to USD 2.131 bn (35% of total import bill).
• Components/Devices (Semiconductors) have the biggest share of total electronics products imports (26.1%)
• Electronics exports accounted for 46% of the total exports of the Philippines in August 2015
• Assembled electronics makeup almost half of the merchandise exports of the country
• Top Import Partners: Taiwan (15.8%), United States of America (14.9%), and China (13.6%)
• Top Export Partners: China (24.9%), Hongkong (11.1%), and Japan (9.4%)
• PH minimum energy performance standards: Voltage up to 460 V, Frequency: 60 Hz; No
standard or regulation; No minimum efficiency requirements; No exemptions

II. Business Opportunities
• Under the Investments Priorities Plan (IPP), the Philippines seeks to increase participation in regional and global production of electronics products
• Opportunities for investors and companies to contribute and participate in the “Product and
Technology Holistic Strategy (PATHS)” project which is an industry development program for the electronics industry
• Establishment of the following industry support facilities: Advanced Device and Materials Testing
Laboratory (ADMATEL), Electronics Product Development Center (EPDC), and the Philippine
Institute for IC Design (PIIC)

III. Key Players:
• Texas Instruments
• Toshiba Information Equipment, Inc.
• Sumitronics
• Bell Electronics Philippines
• STMicroelectronics
• Rohm Electronics
• Emerson Electronics
• General Electric Philippines

IV. Challenges:
• The industry is limited to labor intensive assembly and testing segment of the production process
• Unavailability and high cost of raw materials
• Unreliability and low quality standards of local suppliers
• Rising power tariffs and subsidy reductions

V. Trends
• Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) subsector in the country is now focusing on the growth
of medical/industrial instrumentation, automotives, consumer electronics and office equipment.
• The industry is strengthening industry-academe linkages to develop the industry labor force.
• Industry maintains its expertise on semiconductor assembly, packaging and testing (APT).

Sources: Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), News Bytes PH, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), Oxford Business Group

BRITISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE PHILIPPINES
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Taguig City, Philippines 1634
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Sectors: Electronics and Technology
Countries: Philippines
Topics: Market Research
Export Action Plan