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The United States slightly downgraded to 19% the tariff rate on Philippine exports to the US
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Select US exports to the Philippines will have zero tariff
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The 19% tariff rate is slightly lower than the 20% rate effective August 1 announced earlier this month, but still higher than the 17% rate that was supposed to take effect on April 9
The United States slightly downgraded to 19% the tariff rate on Philippine exports to the US, while US exports to the Philippines will have zero tariff, US President Donald Trump announced following a meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on July 22.
Malacañang later clarified that only select US imports, including automobiles, will carry no tariff.
“It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby the Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States and ZERO Tariff. The Philippines will pay a 19% Tariff,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social media platform.
The 19% tariff rate is slightly lower than the 20% rate effective August 1 that Trump announced earlier this month, but still higher than the 17% rate set that was supposed to take effect on April 9. Trump later suspended implementation of the reciprocal tariffs to July 9 to allow more time for negotiations with countries.
“We managed to bring down the 20 percent tariff rate for the Philippines to 19. Now, one percent might seem like a very small concession. However when you put it in real terms, it is a significant achievement,” Marcos, on a three-day state visit to the US, said in an interview with the Philippine media delegation before heading back to Manila Tuesday afternoon (US time).
In a joint press conference before their bilateral meeting at the White House, Trump described President Marcos as a “very tough negotiator” in advancing Philippine interests.
“We’ll probably agree to something. But he is a strong negotiator. He loves your country,” said Trump.
Under the trade deal, Marcos confirmed that the Philippines will remove tariffs on American automobile imports.
“Because we have a tariff on American automobiles, we will open that market and no longer charge tariffs on that,” said Marcos.
On the other hand, the President noted that the Philippines will increase imports from the United States for soy products, wheat, and pharmaceuticals.
“Mas maging mas mura ‘yung gamot natin,” the President stressed. (Our medicines will be cheaper.)
“There’s still a lot of detail that needs to be worked out on the different products and the different exports and imports,” he added.
The US is a top trading partner of the country with bilateral trade of over $20 billion in 2024.
The White House earlier said the new reciprocal tariff rates are “designed to make the terms of our bilateral trade relationships more reciprocal over time and to address the national emergency caused by the massive US goods trade deficit.”
So far, the Philippines still has one of the lowest reciprocal tariffs in the region, similar to Indonesia’s 19%, slightly lower than Vietnam’s 20%, but higher than Singapore’s 10% rate.
