TRADE between the Philippines and the UK is expected to pick up this year, aided by the Philippines’ plan to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (BCCP) said.
Executive Vice Chair Chris Nelson told BusinessWorld via Viber: “Of course, we would like to see it higher, and this could be driven by recent developments such as the Joint Economic and Trade Committee meeting, the Philippines’ plan to join CPTPP, and other macroeconomic factors such as low inflation and the recent policy rate cut by Bangko Sentral,” he said.
Trade between the UK and the Philippines in the 12 months to March amounted to 3 billion pounds.
A year earlier, bilateral trade had been 2.9 billion pounds.
Mr. Nelson said that a trade and investment mission in June indicated UK interest in pharmaceutical, renewable energy, and semiconductor projects.
“Another area of interest is in agriculture, where our partner UK Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board is keen to do another trade mission in November to further assist on inflation and food security,” he added. — Justine Irish D. Tabile