The Philippines is concerned about the U.S. raising tariffs, and the minister of economic affairs said that negotiations will continue.

According to Reuters, on July 10 local time, the Philippine Secretary of Economic Affairs, Frederick Go, expressed concern over the US decision to impose a 20% tariff on its exported goods, but said the Philippines will continue to push for bilateral negotiations to achieve a free trade agreement or other comprehensive economic agreements.

Go said at a press conference: "We remain sincerely committed to continuing the negotiations with the United States to achieve a bilateral, comprehensive economic agreement, or a free trade agreement (FTA) where possible." He added that the Philippine delegation plans to travel to the US next week to hold discussions before the tariff takes effect on August 1.

Philippine Ambassador to the US, Jose Romualdez, said in a phone statement that day that although the 20% rate is still one of the lowest reciprocal tariffs in Southeast Asia, "we still plan to negotiate to reduce this tariff."

Philippine Ambassador Jose Romualdez, Reuters

Data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) shows that the US remains an important export market for the Philippines. In the first five months of this year, the US accounted for nearly 16% of the country's total exports.

Go said the Philippines will continue to advance key economic reforms to ensure the country remains competitive and will seek more trade agreements with other countries to diversify and expand its export markets.

According to data from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the total value of goods trade between the U.S. and the Philippines is expected to reach $23.5 billion in 2024, with the U.S. exporting $9.3 billion to the Philippines, an increase of 0.4% year-on-year; importing $14.2 billion from the Philippines, up 6.9% year-on-year. Therefore, the U.S. had a $4.9 billion trade deficit with the Philippines, up 21.8% from last year.

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