PORT AREA, Manila — Despite increasing inflation rates and the impact of war in the Middle East triggered by American and Israeli attacks on Iran, the Bureau of Customs (BoC) had recorded its second consecutive month of above-target collections with a revenue of ₱73.798 billion in February, up by 1.7 percent or ₱1.2 billion higher than its programmed goal of ₱72.592 billion.

According to BoC commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno, the amount collected is also 2.8 percent higher than the agency’s ₱71.765 billion revenue earnings in February the previous year.

Noting how inflation is seen rising for the third straight month, the Customs chief disclosed that “the entire bureau (was able to) deliver more than the expected financial target for February . . . This, contrary to the expectation that, during the month of the Chinese New Year, collection slows.”

“But we were able to prove, with the efforts of everyone, especially our port collectors, that it can be done—with the proper assessment, stricter implementation of enforcement rules, and due diligence of our deputy commissioners, who keep on budging everyone to collect properly,” he enthused to add.

Accordingly, for the first two months of the year, Customs revenue totaled ₱154.747 billion, up by 2.5 percent or ₱3.729 billion, compared to collections in the same period last year. In 2025, the agency failed to meet its revenue goal, with collections totaling P934.4 billion or below the P958.7-billion target, but still higher than 2024’s P916.674 billion.

“We will continue enhancing our systems and processes to sustain revenue growth and support the country’s fiscal stability and long-term development goals,” Nepomuceno commited even as he cited that he had previously met with port operators and maritime stakeholders to ensure that port operations remain efficient through early coordination and shared planning.

He underscored that regular and open dialogue is critical to anticipating operational pressures, particularly during peak shipping periods and to keeping systems and processes responsive. Nepomuceno said.