THE Philippines is adjusting its trade strategies and will focus on the Asian region amid the possible loss of preferential perks, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) chief said.
“Other than looking at the usual export markets in [the United States] and Europe, we’re also promoting more intra-Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) trade and investments,” PEZA Director General Tereso Panga told reporters last month ahead of the holiday break.
This is part of a border strategy to mitigate the impact of potentially losing preferential trade benefits as the country may no longer be eligible for the European Union’s (EU) Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) and the United Kingdom’s Developing Country Trading Scheme.
PEZA Director General Tereso Panga. PHOTO BY J. GERARD SEGUIA
The National Economic and Development Authority last month said that the Philippines had “a good chance” to achieve upper middle-income country status this year, which would disqualify it from some trade privileges.
The Philippines currently enjoys zero duties on 6,284 locally made products under the GSP+ scheme.
The World Bank classifies a country as upper middle-income when gross national income per capita ranges between $4,516 and $14,005. The Philippines was at $4,230 in 2023 and the World Bank is expected to release its updated income groupings in July.
Officials have said that a free trade agreement with the EU could provide new opportunities for the Philippines. Negotiations, which were suspended during the Duterte administration due to rights concerns, were reopened last year.
A free trade deal with South Korea, meanwhile, took effect at the start of the year.
The government is also looking to seal a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the United Arab Emirates and launched similar talks with Chile last month.
Panga claimed that recent developments, including value chain disruptions, could prompt European and American investors to consider the Asia-Pacific region and the Philippines.
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