EU hoping to ‘match’ PHL ambitions for FTA by 2027

A EUROPEAN UNION (EU) official called the Philippine timetable for concluding a free trade agreement (FTA) “ambitious” but added the EU side is hoping as well for talks to make progress according to the Philippine schedule.

Niclas Kvarnström, managing director for the Asia and the Pacific at the EU External Action Service (EEAS) said at a briefing in Makati City on Wednesday: “That’s great to hear that from the Philippine side, there’s an ambitious timetable,” referring to the schedule set by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.

“We would also like to match that by being ambitious on our side… so we hope very much that timetable is realistic.”

The EU expects bilateral trade to increase with the FTA, Mr. Kvarnström said, cited the aftermath of such deals with Vietnam and Singapore.

“I would say the potential for both economies, and I think that it’s also true to say that we’re quite complementary in terms of economic exchanges and will significantly contribute to market access for both sides… and for the Philippines to move up the value chain,” he said.

Trade Undersecretary Allan B. Gepty has said the government’s internal target is to conclude trade negotiations by 2026, but the Marcos administration’s ultimate aim is to wrap up by 2027.

Mr. Gepty said the 2026 target is intended to ensure no gap in trade privileges should the Philippines lose EU concessions by graduating to upper middle-income status.

The Philippines participates in the EU’s GSP+, a special incentive arrangement for low and lower middle-income countries. It grants the country zero duties on 6,274 made products.

The agreement, which requires the Philippines to uphold commitments to 27 international conventions on human rights, labor, good governance and climate action, was extended until 2027 before it expired at the end of last year.

The EU is expected to negotiate for maximum access for almost all of its products, particularly meat, other agricultural products, electronics, and automotive products, while the Philippines will also be pushing for the maximum access for its agricultural exports, according to Mr. Gepty.

Mr. Kvarnström said he met with officials from the Finance department and other agencies on Nov. 25 to tackle potential areas of cooperation such as critical raw materials and green financing.

“Possible new investments in the green economy were mentioned as a priority area for prospective loan financing with EU grants, blended finance, and guarantees,” according to the Philippines and EU joint statement published by the EEAS.

In his visit to Manila in June, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó said his country, which assumed EU chairmanship in July, seeks to speed up negotiations for the FTA before the country’s GSP+ perks expire in 2027.

“Trade agreements are always tricky to negotiate between partners, but it does help to have political will on both sides, which I think there is (between both countries),” Mr. Kvarnström said.

“We hope that the direction here is that in a world where it’s a tougher space for free trade than it was before with higher geopolitical tensions, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and European countries can find each other to be partners in a deeper way than before.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez