PH secures 2 new free trade deals in 2023

MANILA: The Philippines added two new free trade agreements (FTAs) this year, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and its trade pact with South Korea, to ease barriers to trade and investments and boost commercial ties among partners. RCEP entered into force in the Philippines on June 2 following the Senate's concurrence on Feb. 21, two years after the participating countries -- 10 ASEAN member states and FTA partners China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand -- concluded the negotiations in November 2020. National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the RCEP as another engine for the country's economic growth. "Being part of RCEP will further enhance our market access, placing us at par with other RCEP-participating countries and the world's largest economies such as China, Japan, and Korea, among others,' Balisacan said in a previous statement. RCEP participating countries account for one-third of the world's population and economy, m aking it the largest FTA in the world. Balisacan also refuted claims that RCEP will only allow the influx of agricultural products into the country, as only 15 agricultural commodity groups out of 33 tariff lines have tariff reduction. According to NEDA, only 1.9 percent of the 1,718 agricultural lines and only 0.8 percent of the total agricultural imports have tariff reduction under RCEP. Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual, on the other hand, encouraged Filipino exporters, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), to take advantage of the regional trade pact. 'RCEP is a modern, comprehensive, high-quality, and mutually beneficial economic partnership agreement that will further promote the economic efficiency of member states, strengthening linkages in sectors such as manufacturing, technology, agriculture, natural resources, as well as reinforcing MSME participation in the global value chain networks,' Pascual said. The country also welcomed another bilatera l FTA as it signed the deal with South Korea on Sept.7. The Philippines-South Korea FTA is the country's third bilateral trade pact after the Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement in 2006 and the European Free Trade Association in 2016. Manila and Seoul initiated the bilateral FTA in June 2019. Source: Philippines News Agency