DTI: Travel ban vs US senators might affect FTA talks
Credit to Author: Tyrone Jasper C. Piad| Date: Thu, 09 Jan 2020 14:00:49 +0000
THE travel ban ordered by President Rodrigo Duterte against two American senators last month might affect the planned Philippines-United States free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations this year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, in an interview with The Manila Times, said the ban had become a “possible part of the equation,” adding that it could weigh on the countries’ relationship.
Last December, Duterte denied US senators Dick Durbin of Illinois and Patrick Leahy of Vermont entry of to the Philippines. The two lawmakers have supported a law banning Philippine government officials involved in the imprisonment of Sen. Leila de Lima from entering the US.
The Palace had said “any form of pressure that is deemed or tantamount to an interference into our established justice system or other processes shall be reciprocated.”
Should the US implement the ban, President Duterte said his administration might require American citizens to secure a visa to enter the country.
“I don’t know if they would want to mix politics with trade, we don’t know that,” Lopez said.
But the Trade chief remains optimistic, saying this would not stop the DTI from pushing for an FTA deal.
“We will continue with what we have to do,” he said. “As far as we are concerned, we would like to treat it differently, separately [from the] FTA.”
Both Lopez and American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Executive Director Ebb Hinchliffe recently said they were looking forward to launching trade talks this year.
Lopez said it would like to add more export products to the US enjoying zero-tariff perks, citing footwear and garments among them.
Hinchliffe said earlier that negotiations between the two countries, which he intended to bring up to Congress early this year, would not take too long, as both countries have clear agendas already.
Currently, the Philippines is enjoying zero or reduced tariffs on over 5,000 goods or 48 percent of the 10,600 US tariff lines under the US Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).
The GSP privilege is effective until December 31 this year. Without the trade deal, the Philippines would have to renew GSP status to keep its preferential status.
As of end-September, Philippine shipments to US reached $8.57 billion, up 7.4 percent from the previous year’s $7.98 billion, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
US imports, meanwhile, declined by 3.3 percent to $5.80 billion in the first three quarters of 2019 from nearly $6 billion year-on-year.
Currently, the Philippines’ only bilateral free trade agreement is with Japan under the Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement. The country is also working to conclude FTA negotiations with South Korea by the first half of this year.