The Philippine Bureau of Customs (BOC) will likely miss its October collection target of P30.48 billion by about P8.5 billion, preliminary data from BOC showed.
The agency has so far booked cash collections of P21.9 billion for October, a figure which is expected to go up by another P2 billion once all duties are accounted for. Other collections, including the tax expenditure fund or paper profits from import transactions of other government agencies, will also be part of the final accounting.
This year’s October collection will, however, surpass the same month last year’s take of P22.57 billion, according to Customs commissioner Rozzano Rufino Biazon.
All collection districts failed to meet their respective targets in October led by the Port of Manila, which had a shortfall of P2.43 billion, and Batangas Port, with a deficit of P1.49 billion.
The Manila International Container Port fell short by P1.4 billion; Ninoy Aquino International Airport, by P341 million; and the Port of Limay, by P685 million.
For the first ten months of the year, BOC’s preliminary collection shortfall amounted to P45.07 billion after it took in P215.04 billion against the target of P260.11 billion.
Early this year, government slashed BOC’s collection goal by 13% from P320 billion to P278 billion due to generally slow economic activity, inflation, and the strong peso.
The bureau’s 2012 target was also cut to P315 billion from P365.1 billion.
