English
Philippines to deepen trade ties with Switzerland
The Philippines reaffirmed its commitment to expand trade and investment ties with Switzerland and deepen cooperation in clean techology and renewable energy, infrastructure, life sciences and digital healthcare sectors.
The Department of Trade and Industry made the commitment ahead of the fourth Joint Economic Commission (JEC) to be held this week.
“We enjoin Swiss businesses to look closer in the Philippines and assess the merits of investing into the country given the set of incentives that we offer, matched with unparalleled abundance and cost efficiency of labor and of course, access to strategic markets,” Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo said during the recent virtual business forum titled “Philippines and Switzerland: Investing Together for a Better Future.”
Rodolfo said bilateral trade between the Philippines and Switzerland rose to $764 million in 2020 and Philippine exports to the European country went up by 8 percent.
Approved investments from Switzerland reached P1 billion as Swiss entities like Nestle, Franke Food Service, and CHAMP Cargosystems continue to invest in the Philippines.
“Next year, we will celebrate the 65th anniversary of the diplomatic relationship and we will build upon a good trade and investment relationship. We have been doing this relationship with you [since 1956], but if I look at our trade and investment bonds, they date back way more than a century [before] we started the diplomatic relationship,” said Swiss Ambassador to the Philippines Alain Gaschen.
DTI, citing an analysis made by Professor Patrick Ziltener of the University of Zürich, said Swiss companies looking to expand their markets can leverage the PH-European Free Trade Association (PH-EFTA) free trade deal that was signed in 2018.
He said that before the deal came into force, Swiss companies paid $10.5 million in duties on $226.7 million in exports per annum in 2017.
Zilterner’s study showed that when the deal came into effect in 2018, Swiss companies exporting to the Philippines managed to save roughly $234,000, but still shelled out $7 million in duties.
“In 2019, the year completely covered by the FTA, the utilization rate of PH-EFTA was around 14 percent and low on a product-by-product basis, with food preparation and pharma having low utilization rates, while textiles, many metal products, and machines at zerp percent. Utilization to increase over time, but proactive information campaign seems necessary,” Ziltener noted.
The webinar was organized by the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Bern together with the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry, Board of Investments, Philippines-Swiss Business Council, and the Swiss Embassy in Manila in coordination with Switzerland Global Enterprise and the Swiss-Asian Chamber of Commerce. It is part of an ongoing initiative to start a conversation on rebooting the economy through investments in targeted sectors.
Source: https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/06/18/business/top-business/ph-to-deepen-trade-ties-with-switzerland/1803674