The Philippine Bureau of Customs (BOC) collected P37.654 billion in duties and taxes in March 2017, up 3% from the month’s revenue goal and 16% higher than the collection in the same period last year.
A preliminary report by the BOC’s Financial Service showed that the March 2017 collection surpassed the P36.572-billion target and the P32.383-billion revenue reported during the same period last year.
Of the 17 BOC collection districts, 10 exceeded their March targets. Manila International Container Port, which contributed the largest amount to the total, collected P11.721 billion, 3.7% past its P11.30-billion target.
Port of Legaspi, which earned P77 million, posted the biggest increment of 276.1% from the P20.5-million target. This was followed by the Port of Zamboanga, which collected P32 million, or 128% higher than the P14-million target.
Others that beat their targets were the Port of Batangas (P8.50 billion, 3.7% higher than P8.195 billion); Port of Cebu (P1.680 billion, 4.8% more than P1.604 billion); Port of Cagayan de Oro (P1.266 billion, 44% higher than P879.3 million); Port of Davao (P1.321 billion, 24.1% up from P1.06 billion); Port of Clark (P131 million, 5.4% more than P124.6 million); Port of San Fernando (P244 million, 30.2% greater than P187.5 million); and Port of Iloilo (P219 million, 8.7% higher than P201 million).
Last January, BOC exceeded its collection target by posting P35.943 billion, 1.2% above the P35.509 billion target and 15% higher than the January 2016 collection. In February, it took in P30.755 billion, up 14% year-on-year but 7.9% short of the target due to the slowdown in imports during the Chinese New Year.
For 2017, BOC hopes to hit the agency’s P468-billion revenue target, which Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon said is achievable.
“With the strong implementation of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and our intensified operations against smuggling, I am positive that we will be able to achieve, or even exceed, our 2017 revenue goal,” Faeldon said in a statement.
Image courtesy of Danilo Rizzuti at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
