The Philippines will negotiate the 17 percent reciprocal tariff on its exports imposed by the United States even as President Donald Trump has ordered a 90-day pause on the new impost, with the exception of China, which was slapped with a 125 percent levy.
In a briefing in Malacanang yesterday, Secretary Frederick Go, Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs, said he would fly to the United States to negotiate with the US Trade Representative.
He did not say when but said it would be “soon.”
“We’ve reached out to the US Trade Representative, and we have communicated our desire to engage in a meeting or dialogue with them, and they have positively responded, Go said.
“So I will be scheduling a trip to the United States to meet with the USTR soon,” he said.
Go said the 17 percent tariff is expected to have a minimal impact of about 0.1 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the next two years.
Go said while the Philippines received the second lowest tariff in the Asian region, “any additional tariffs still affect certain industries.”
He said that the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) estimated the impact of the US tariff. “So, konti lang po iyong effect (so, the effect is minimal).”
Go said that businesses are resilient, which means that if one export sector is affected, other potential markets may open.
Earlier, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with his economic team last Tuesday to discuss the tariffs and their effect on exports for the Philippines and other Asian countries. They also discussed the industries that would be affected, the possible impact on the country’s economy, and potential ways forward or actions the Marcos administration could take.
Go said that to better prepare for the impact of the additional tariff, the Philippines will engage with the export industry players and discuss with them what possible measures they can take and what assistance the government could provide for them. The Philippines will also monitor how the other countries reacted, including making possible appeals to the US and how the US reacted to their requests.
He said the country also attended the special trade ministers’ meeting yesterday of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), which raised the following: to communicate and reaffirm with the US the long enduring and strong relationship between Asean and US; to express their concern over the unilateral tariffs that are being imposed on the Asean; and to “engage in a frank and constructive dialogue with the US to reaffirm our readiness in Asean to work together, to explore mutually acceptable solutions on issues of common interest.”
Go said, “There are probably two key takeaways here—one is that every country will continue with its bilateral negotiations with the US and concurrently conduct a regional discussion with the US. And the keywords are cooperation, not retaliation.”
Go said the Asean trade leaders also agreed to discuss ways to strengthen and boost intra-Asean trade and investment within the region.
US President Trump imposed hefty tariff rates on the US trading partners, claiming their taxpayers had been ripped off for over 50 years.
However, he suspended for 90 days the imposition of the sweeping reciprocal tariffs for most countries and authorized a universal “lowered reciprocal tariff of 10 percent” as negotiations are ongoing.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Go wants to discuss Trump’s latest directive before making any comments on the 90-day pause.
