Babs, which killed at least 163 people, whipped Bicol region in the southern tip of the country's main Luzon island before ripping through rice-growing areas in northern provinces.

It also lashed parts of central Visayas region in its three-day March across the Philippines, the world's largest exporter of coconut oil.

Luzon, including the key Bicol region, and the Visayasislands account for up to 40 per cent of total production.

Babs left the country and now threatens Taiwan and China's coastal provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, but its impact on Philippine coconut production was unclear.

"We still have to get the overall assessment of damage. But definitely this will affect the overall outlook for 1999," one trader said.