Business urges government to start talks for Phl-EU trade deal

MANILA, Philippines - Local businessmen are worried that the Philippines will be left behind by its ASEAN neighbors as the government continues to drag its feet on the negotiations for a possible bilateral agreement with the European Union.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) vice chairman Donald G. Dee said that the Philippines has to move fast in pursuing its negotiations for a bilateral agreement with the European Union, otherwise it will be left out by other ASEAN countries that are taking the same route for a trade deal with the EU.

The PCCI reiterated its call amid the ongoing discussions for a possible Philippines-EU FTA following the conclusion of the Partnership Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between the two countries in Brussels in June this year.

Dee underscored the need to craft the Philippine position and strategy in preparation for the actual negotiations whenever both countries agreed to sit down and once the PCA has been signed.  The PCA is not an FTA but it is a prerequisite to having a trade deal.

“The EU is one major market that we see beneficial to our exports. As we know, other ASEAN countries like Vietnam and Singapore are at the advanced stages of negotiations while Indonesia has already signed a PCA. Likewise, negotiations with Malaysia have also started. We have to move quickly but with caution if we really want to take advantage and penetrate the EU market,” Dee said.

Earlier, European Union Ambassador to the Philippines Alistair MacDonald warned that EU might not be able to accommodate the Philippines if it continues to drag its position from pursuing an FTA. He said the EU is “willing to engage bilaterally with ASEAN countries who are able to negotiate an ambitious FTA, which covers not only the liberalization of trade in goods and services, but also addresses issues on IPR protection, trade facilitation, government procurement, investment and competition policy.”

However, while the Philippine government acknowledged EU as a major trading partner, Undersecretary Adrian Cristobal Jr. of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) stressed the need to commission and come up with sector specific studies that would also help them appreciate the benefits as well as prepare for the impact of this agreement.

“Pursuing an FTA with EU will entail a lot of work for us. Intensive studies of gains and costs will have to be conducted and validated and we have to prepare the various sectors of our economy for short as well as long-term effects,” Cristobal said.

According to the PCCI study, some of the sectors that would likely to benefit from the pact include vegetable, oils and fats, textiles/apparel, motor vehicles parts, other manufactures. Other potential sectors are financial services and insurance, chemical products, communication, construction/dwellings, energy and water supply, paper and publishing, leather, machinery and electrical appliances. For instance, the business process outsourcing (BPO) is a major strength of the Philippines, both as a source of revenue and employment for the Philippines.