The Philippines is an island and borders China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and Palau by sea. Exports In 2017 the Philippines exported $99B, making it the 37th largest exporter in the world. Sinicization and Chinese trade (982 onwards) The earliest date suggested for direct Chinese contact with the Philippines was 982. At the time, merchants from " Ma-i " (now thought to be either Bay, Laguna on the shores of Laguna de Bay , [27] or a site on the island of Mindoro [28] [29] ) brought their wares to Guangzhou and Quanzhou . Philippines Balance of Trade Philippines has been running annual trade deficits due to high imports of raw materials and intermediate goods. In 2013, the biggest trade deficits were recorded with: Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and South Korea while the biggest trade surpluses with: Japan, Hong Kong and the United States.