Brussels, 22/12/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 22 December, European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström and Philippine Secretary of Trade and Industry Gregory Domingo agreed to start negotiations for an EU-Philippines free trade agreement. The first round of negotiations will be held in Manila in the first half of 2016.
The two parties hope to conclude an agreement covering a wide range of issues - including market access for goods and services, investment, access to public procurement, non-tariff barriers, competition and protection of intellectual property rights. The future agreement will also include a comprehensive chapter on environmental protection and social development.
“The Philippines has been one of the fastest growing economies in the region in recent years. We need to make sure our companies enjoy the right conditions to seize the great potential of that market of 100 million consumers”, Malmström stated.
The EU has already concluded free trade agreements with two other ASEAN (Association of South East Asia) countries - Singapore and Vietnam - and similar negotiations are under way (although on ice) with another two countries in the bloc - Malaysia and Thailand. The EU is also negotiating an agreement on investment with Burma/Myanmar. The long-term goal continues to be concluding an EU-ASEAN bloc-to-bloc agreement.
Bilateral EU-Philippines relations are governed by a partnership and cooperation agreement, signed in July 2012, which provides for deepening political dialogue on peace, international security and human rights, for strengthening economic and trade links, and for collaborating more closely on issues such as migration and energy (see EUROPE 10654).
The EU is the Philippines' third biggest trading partner and its top investor. Bilateral trade in goods reached €12.5 million in 2014 (€6.8 million in exports for the EU and €5.7 million in exports for the Philippines). (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)