President Duterte on Wednesday night approved the adoption of several measures to cushion the impact of a possible prolonged trade war between the United States and China after the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) raised concerns about the trade conflict between the two countries.
Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo, concurrent presidential spokesman, said the NEDA and DTI at a Cabinet meeting in Malacanang on Wednesday presented some technical reports about the possible impact of a prolonged trade conflict between the two economic giants.
“While the Philippines is not as vulnerable in the trade war; in the long run, any prolonged trade war will have negative effects,” Panelo said.
Panelo said President Duterte immediately approved the measures presented by the two agencies to cushion the negative effects of the row.
These measures include expediting the passage of the Corporate Income Tax Rationalization Act (CITRA) and the amendments to the Foreign Investment Act, intensifying the government’s investment campaigns in the East Asian region, expediting business processing and reducing processing time especially in exports, among others.
The US imposed additional tariff on Chinese imports effective last September 1.
