RP gains tariff concession from Asean neighbors

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has gained a tariff concession from its Association of South East Asian Nation (ASEAN) neighbors, allowing the country to maintain its tariff on sugar instead of reducing it to five percent next year, said Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap said yesterday.

In an interview, Yap said the Philippines will not have to immediately drop to five percent its tariff on sugar under the ASEAN Free Trade Arrangement (AFTA) Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) scheme.

Instead, the rate will be brought down gradually from the current 38 percent to five percent in 2015.

As for rice, Yap said that there is yet no response to the Philippines’ position. The current tariff on imported rice is at 40 percent.

Yap said the Philippines’ preferred “landing zone” for rice tariff is 35 percent to 40 percent until 2015.

Under the AFTA-CEPT, all member nations are supposed to bring down next year their tariffs to zero to five percent for all products including those that were previously deferred under the sensitive and highly-sensitive list.

The Philippines has invoked a special protocol for the exclusion of rice under the AFTA-CEPT.

Originally, Yap said, the Philippines had requested to be allowed to keep a 35 percent tariff cover on rice imports up to 2018.

However, upon the request of Thailand, the Philippines had agreed to revise its request to 35 percent up to 2015.