MANILA, April 24 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' total agricultural trade grew at an annual rate of 19 percent, amounting to 26.80 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Monday.
In 2022, agricultural exports amounted to 7.50 billion dollars, or 28.0 percent of the total agricultural trade, while the imports reached 19.30 billion dollars, the PSA said.
The trade deficit at 11.80 billion dollars reflects an annual growth of 32.8 percent.
According to the PSA, the value of agricultural exports accounted for 9.5 percent of the country's total exports in 2022. Among the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) member countries, Malaysia was the top buyer of agricultural exports.
The statistics agency added that agricultural imports represented a share of 14.1 percent of the Philippines' total imports in 2022. Indonesia reported the highest agricultural import value among ASEAN countries. ■