DoTell
FULL MEMBER
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2013
- Messages
- 868
- Reaction score
- 0
- Country
- Location
Philippines and TPP: Aquino government won't seek to join, trade chief says- Nikkei Asian Review
Aquino government won't seek to join, trade chief says
NAOYUKI TOYAMA, Nikkei staff writer
TOKYO -- The Philippines will not take part in negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership under its current government, the country's trade secretary said Monday, an about-face that suggests Manila sees little momentum behind the U.S.- and Japan-centered free trade initiative.
"There is not enough time [for the Philippines] to join," Gregory Domingo told The Nikkei here, citing legal and constitutional complications.
Gregory Domingo
President Benigno Aquino had seemed inclined toward TPP membership, telling U.S. counterpart Barack Obama last April that the Philippines was studying its options for joining. Domingo said then that "studies have shown the TPP [would benefit] the Philippines," trying to head off domestic opposition to such a move.
But since then, the 12 nations at the TPP negotiations table have struggled to bridge differences over intellectual-property safeguards, agricultural tariffs and other issues. When Obama visited the Philippines last year, many had hoped a broad agreement would be reached by summer. But the finish line has kept receding. Now, it is virtually out of sight.
Looming behind the Philippines' drift away from the TPP is China. For all their territorial feuding in the South China Sea, the two countries' economic ties are strengthening. The Philippines is participating in negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, China's alternative to the TPP, which members aim to wrap up this year.
The RCEP offers the prospect of "a better deal" than existing economic partnerships, Domingo said Monday.
The Philippines also seems to be gravitating toward China on infrastructure investment, an issue given greater prominence by Beijing's plan for a new multilateral lender.
Rogelio Singson
Asia's demand for infrastructure is too great for the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank or the Japan International Cooperation Agency alone to satisfy, Rogelio Singson, public works and highways secretary, told The Nikkei here Monday. The Chinese-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank would "not compete with but complement" the ADB, the World Bank and bilateral development assistance, he said.
Domingo and Singson expressed their country's eagerness to attract Japanese investment. The Philippine government is still working on tax incentives for automakers that set up factories there. Thailand already dominates small-car manufacturing in Southeast Asia, "so it doesn't make sense for the Philippines to compete in this category," Domingo said. Manila is eyeing segments such as electric vehicles and large autos. It intends to limit the incentives to "a few players" and will announce the names soon, he said.
In the construction industry, Filipino companies enjoy plentiful labor and are quick learners "but they lack capital [and] the latest technology," Singson argued, saying they can serve as joint venture partners for foreign companies looking to do business in Southeast Asia.
Aquino government won't seek to join, trade chief says
NAOYUKI TOYAMA, Nikkei staff writer
TOKYO -- The Philippines will not take part in negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership under its current government, the country's trade secretary said Monday, an about-face that suggests Manila sees little momentum behind the U.S.- and Japan-centered free trade initiative.
"There is not enough time [for the Philippines] to join," Gregory Domingo told The Nikkei here, citing legal and constitutional complications.
Gregory Domingo
President Benigno Aquino had seemed inclined toward TPP membership, telling U.S. counterpart Barack Obama last April that the Philippines was studying its options for joining. Domingo said then that "studies have shown the TPP [would benefit] the Philippines," trying to head off domestic opposition to such a move.
But since then, the 12 nations at the TPP negotiations table have struggled to bridge differences over intellectual-property safeguards, agricultural tariffs and other issues. When Obama visited the Philippines last year, many had hoped a broad agreement would be reached by summer. But the finish line has kept receding. Now, it is virtually out of sight.
Looming behind the Philippines' drift away from the TPP is China. For all their territorial feuding in the South China Sea, the two countries' economic ties are strengthening. The Philippines is participating in negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, China's alternative to the TPP, which members aim to wrap up this year.
The RCEP offers the prospect of "a better deal" than existing economic partnerships, Domingo said Monday.
The Philippines also seems to be gravitating toward China on infrastructure investment, an issue given greater prominence by Beijing's plan for a new multilateral lender.
Rogelio Singson
Asia's demand for infrastructure is too great for the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank or the Japan International Cooperation Agency alone to satisfy, Rogelio Singson, public works and highways secretary, told The Nikkei here Monday. The Chinese-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank would "not compete with but complement" the ADB, the World Bank and bilateral development assistance, he said.
Domingo and Singson expressed their country's eagerness to attract Japanese investment. The Philippine government is still working on tax incentives for automakers that set up factories there. Thailand already dominates small-car manufacturing in Southeast Asia, "so it doesn't make sense for the Philippines to compete in this category," Domingo said. Manila is eyeing segments such as electric vehicles and large autos. It intends to limit the incentives to "a few players" and will announce the names soon, he said.
In the construction industry, Filipino companies enjoy plentiful labor and are quick learners "but they lack capital [and] the latest technology," Singson argued, saying they can serve as joint venture partners for foreign companies looking to do business in Southeast Asia.
it's a smart move make the offer tempting and when they come to rely on you charge more 
