Philippines: Oilseeds and Products Annual
The Philippines is the second largest market for U.S. soybean meal (SBM), next to Mexico, and the world’s largest coconut oil (CNO) exporter. Driven by strong feed demand from the domestic hog and poultry industries, alongside significant investments in feed grain storage and distribution infrastructure, SBM imports are forecast to reach 2.65 million tons in market year (MY) 16/17, increasing to 2.8 million tons in MY 17/18. U.S. SBM sales are projected to account for roughly 60 percent of overall imports through MY 17/18. For CNO, from 757,000 tons in MY 15/16, exports are forecast up eight percent to 820,000 tons in MY 16/17, and should increase a further seven percent to 880,000 tons in MY 17/18 as copra production rises as a result of the return to ‘normal’ weather conditions in the second half of 2016 after a prolonged period of drought.
