Manila, Mindanao traders push PJEPA restrictions

BUSINESSES in Manila and Mindanao want the government to restrict the entry of Japanese goods covered by the Philippine-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (PJEPA).

The Department of Trade and Industry said consultations in those areas held in preparation for a review of the PJEPA resulted in calls for higher tariff rate quotas.

The TRQ is a trade policy tool used to protect locally produced commodities by setting a ceiling on the volume of competing imports that would enjoy lower tariff rates.

Dubbed as One Country, One Voice, the DTI consultations began last August and would culminate in the general review of the trade agreement come December in Japan.

PJEPA entered into force in December 2008 and is the Philippines’ first and only bilateral free trade agreement.

PJEPA covers trade in goods, services, investments, movement of natural persons, intellectual property, customs procedures, improvement of the business environment, and government procurement.

Under the agreement, 81 percent of Philippine products exported to Japan qualify for duty-free shipment.

“We have to use PJEPA to our advantage. We need to review its implementation and discuss how it can be further improved. While our end goal is to increase trade with Japan through PJEPA, we should also factor in the social costs of doing business,” DTI Undersecretary Adrian Cristobal said.

Japan is the Philippines’ top export market with shipments valued at $7.8 billion in 2010, for a 15.2-percent share of Manila’s exports. –Darwin G. Amojelar, Manila Times