More Pinoy exporters using AANZ free trade agreement

More Filipino exporters are using the Asean Australia New Zealand Free Trade agreement (AANZFTA) as Philippine utilization rate increased by 76.1 percent in 2011 compared to 64.1 percent in 2010.

This was according to the data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS) presented at the recent AANZFTA Joint Committee Meeting.

ABS data showed Philippine exports to Australia that claimed preferential tariffs in 2011 increased by 12 percent to $155 million from $115 million in 2010.

Based on AANZFTA data, some estimated $44 million trade opportunities for the Philippines remain untapped under the agreement.

In 2011, total Philippine exports to Australia grew by 4.68 percent to $449 million from $429 million in 2010 according to ABS.

“The DTI (Department of Trade and Industry)’s trade advocacy and information campaign is making an impact as shown by increased exporter utilization of our trade agreements. We shall sustain the program so our exporters can penetrate and expand into alternative markets,” said Undersecretary for Industry Development and Trade Policy Adrian Cristobal Jr.

In 2010, the DTI together with the Bureau of Customs (BoC), Tariff Commission (TC), Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Philippine Exporter Confederation (PhilExport), and the private sector, launched the Doing Business in Free Trade Areas (DBFTA) program nationwide to increase awareness on the country’s trade agreements. The program has since increased exporter awareness of FTAs resulting in 41.15 percent utilization rate of the Asean Free Trade Agreement (AFTA), among other countries in Asean with high utilization rate.

As of May 2012, 40 DBFTA information sessions have been held all over the country which benefited close to 2,000 participants from 1,061 firms. DBFTA targets 100 information sessions for 2012.

AANZFTA covers over 20 percent of Australia’s merchandise trade, worth over $86 billion. The agreement covers trade in goods, services, investment, intellectual property, e-commerce, entry of business people and economic cooperation.

AANZFTA, which was entered into force in 2010, grants zero tariffs for all Philippine exports to Australia and New Zealand, with 96.4 percent of tariff lines covered by this year.

Australia is the 13th largest economy in the world and has experienced 19 years of uninterrupted growth despite the global recession in 2009.

Asean is one of Australia’s largest trading partners and Asean-Australia trade has been growing by 15 percent annually in recent years.

Recently, the Philippines hosted the Australia New Zealand Integration Forum at the tail-end of the Asean Senior Economic Officials Meeting in Manila.

Various government agencies from the Philippines learned from Australia and New Zealand’s experience in forming a single merchandise trade market and in integrating the services sector.

Australia and New Zealand have developed a system to certify the skills level of plumbers allowing them to cross borders and practice their skills.

In terms of shipping, Australia’s shipping industry put up a process to grant special licenses to qualified shipping companies to benefit petroleum and cement industries.

Foreign ships have since accounted for 25 percent of Australia’s cargo turn-over, from only 7 percent.

Related to this, the Philippines went up by 20 notches to the 72nd spot in the World Economic Forum Enabling Trade Index contained in the Global Enabling Trade Report 2012.

A number of Asean countries, including the Philippines, improved their rankings particularly in the tariffs sub-index which means the Philippines is making an impact in lowering trade barriers among its exporters.