The U.S. has reached a trade deal with the Philippines following a meeting Tuesday between President Donald Trump and the country’s president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., at the White House, Trump announced on social media.
“It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs,” the president wrote on Truth Social.
According to Trump, the U.S. will impose a 19 percent tariff on imports from the Philippines, higher than the 17 percent “reciprocal” duty the U.S. briefly imposed in April but slightly lower than the 20 percent tariff he threatened in a letter earlier this month.
“In addition, we will work together Militarily. It was a Great Honor to be with the President. He is Highly Respected in his Country, as he should be. He is also a very good, and tough, negotiator,” Trump wrote in his post.
The final terms of the deal have yet to be officially confirmed by the Marcos government.
The White House is facing an Aug. 1 deadline to raise tariffs on dozens of trading partners, unless they negotiate new agreements with the Trump administration.
The Philippines has a substantial trade relationship with the U.S., sending $14.1 billion in goods to the U.S. last year. The double-digit tariff rate — two percent higher than the duty Trump initially levied — raised immediate questions about what benefits the Southeast Asian country gets from the deal.
“It is sad that for the Philippines the rate even went up — as an ally it is hard to take,” said a Filipino official close to the negotiations, granted anonymity to speak freely.
