PH seeks key goods exemption from US tariff hike to protect exporters 

The Philippine government hopes that semiconductors and agricultural products will remain exempt from the newly announced tariff increase by the United States.

Amid uncertainty over whether the Trump administration will implement the 15-percent global tariff affecting all trade partners, Finance Secretary Frederick Go said during a press briefing on Feb. 26 that the government, while hopeful, also assumes key exports to continue being exempt.

“What we are hopeful for, and what we assume it to be, is that if they apply the 15 percent tariffs on us, it will continue to apply to the goods that they were previously applying a 19 percent tariff on,” Go said.

He added that the government is requesting formal confirmation from Washington, along with over 150 other trading partners, to clarify the situation.

The said matter follows a US Supreme Court decision last week that nullified tariffs previously imposed by US President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, including the 19 percent tariff on Philippine exports. 

Trump had initially announced a 10-percent global tariff before later suggesting an increase to 15 percent, creating uncertainty for trading partners.

The Philippine economic team, through the Palace, said that it is closely monitoring the situation to protect the country’s exporters.

In a press briefing on Feb. 25, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro stated that the team is putting an effort in communicating with the US.

“We will continue to engage with the US given that [the] US remains a major trading partner,” Castro stated.

The team noted that, in the meantime, they will evaluate and monitor recent developments.

“Our goal is to ensure that our trade and investment relations with the US remain stable and predictable,” the economic team stated.

Philippine exports to the US reached Php 815.17 billion last year, underscoring the US as one of the country’s largest trading partners.