THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (DA) does not see the Philippines on the “losing end” amid the United States’ reciprocal tariff policy, paused for 90 days by the Trump administration following global backlash.
“Hindi naman natin nakikitang problema ang US per se. Kasi kung titingnan, nasa favored tayo, hindi sa losing end ng reciprocal tariff or iyong pag-pause (We do not see the US as a problem per se. Because if we look at it, we are on favored end and not on the losing end of the reciprocal tariff and the decision to pause it),” DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said in an interview Thursday.
Trump last week announced a policy to slap a 17-percent reciprocal tariff on Philippine goods but abruptly paused it on Thursday, admitting that it made markets nervous.
De Mesa said the 17-percent tariff earlier announced for the Philippines was still lower than in other countries in Asia.
Before the latest US tariff development, other competitor countries faced higher tariffs including Vietnam which was slapped with a 46-percent tariff; Thailand, 36 percent; Indonesia, 32 percent; other ASEAN members like Cambodia, 49 percent; and Malaysia, 24 percent.
De Mesa said the US remains the country’s top trade partner to date.
In 2024, the Philippines logged USD5 billion agri-fishery trade with the US, with around USD3.6 billion worth of imports to the US and USD1.4 billion export from the US.
Besides the US, major trading partners of the Philippines include Japan, China, and other Asian markets particularly for coconut, coconut by-products, Hass avocado, abaca, and tropical fruits like pineapple and mango, among others.
De Mesa, meanwhile, assured that the DA is working to expand its international market to ensure alternative export destinations for Philippine agricultural goods.
“The Secretary (Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.) is very active in promoting agricultural commodities. Marami siyang pinupuntahan na fairs… Very proactive ang DA (he attends a lot of fairs… The DA is very proactive),” he said.
De Mesa said they are eyeing more agricultural markets for exports in the Middle East and European Union.
He also said DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. is set to visit Spain and Italy soon to look for “additional markets.”
Tiu Laurel earlier led a DA delegation to South Korea and Japan where they discussed agricultural trade and innovation partnerships.
De Mesa said at least 10 companies in South Korea expressed their commitments to join the Korea Agri Machinery Industry Complex (KAMIC) this year under the DA-Korea Agricultural Machinery Industry Cooperative (KAMICO) partnership.
KAMIC, to be established in a 20-hectare land area in Cabanatuan City in Nueva Ecija, will be the first agricultural machinery industry complex in the Philippines. (Stephanie Sevillano)
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