Coconut oil exports continue rise in March

Philippine coconut oil exports nearly tripled in March from a year earlier as a result of higher copra output and increased demand abroad. Preliminary data from the United Coconut Associations of the Philippines (UCAP) showed that sales abroad reached 127,142 metric tons (MT) in March, almost three times the level in March last year. The group said the industry would produce more copra this year. "Also, we came from a very low statistical base last year [after we were] weighed down by the economic slowdown," UCAP Executive Director Yvonne V. Agustin said. She also traced lower output last year to premature harvest of the nut in the first half of 2008, which disrupted the production cycle of the coconut. Agustin said it was too early to say how significant the effects of the El Niño-induced drought on the coconut industry will be, adding that the impact could linger next year. She said the March export level was higher than the 80,000-100,000 MT average, a sign of the sector’s recovery. "The US and European markets account for more than 80 percent of the export although the Chinese market is coming out strong and we still have Japan and Korea outside our traditional markets," Agustin said. The Philippines, the world’s biggest exporter of coconut oil, sells 80 percent of its coconut oil overseas. The country sold 808,007 MT of the commodity last year, 4.6 percent lower than in the prior year and below the 835,000-MT forecast as a result of anemic demand from industrialized countries. The National Statistics Office earlier reported that earnings from coconut oil exports increased more than five times — the biggest growth among the country’s top 10 exports — in January. Coconut oil was the third top earner in January, with revenues worth $102.03 million. — NPA, GMANews.TV