Philippines' August imports fall 28.3 pct on yr

* August imports fall 28.3 pct on yr to $3.62 bln

* Electronics imports at $1.3 bln, down 21.2 percent yr/yr

* Trade deficit at $144 million in August

* Jan-August trade deficit at $4.0 bln

MANILA, Oct 27 - Philippine imports in August tumbled 28.3 percent from a year earlier to $3.62 billion, the statistics office said on Tuesday.

KEY DATA

Aug July June May April March

Imports ($bln) 3.62 4.03 4.11 3.62 3.04 3.27

yr/yr change (pct) -28.3 -31.6 -22.8 -24.3 -37.4 -36.2

KEY POINTS:

- Philippine imports are dominated by electronics, which are mostly used in the Southeast Asian nation's exports industry, a bedrock of the economy. Imports of electronics parts were down 21.2 percent in August from a year earlier after an 8.2 percent annual drop in July.

- The Philippine central bank expects merchandise exports to fall 20 percent this year but grow 7 percent in 2010, and imports to slip 17 percent this year and climb 13 percent next year. [ID:nMNB002485]

- Exports in August fell 21 percent from a year earlier, narrower than the previous month's 25.4 percent contraction and the slowest drop since November 2008. [ID:nMAN438432]

- Apart from electronic parts and fuel, the Philippines' other top imports are electrical and industrial machinery, transport equipment, iron, steel and textiles.

LINKS:

- For more data, statistics office website is http://www.census.gov.ph