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The Department of Commerce and Industry (DTI) is hopeful that the Regional Comprehensive Economic Association (RCEP) free trade agreement will be ratified next year.
In a recent briefing, Allan Gepty, the Philippines Undersecretary of Commerce and chief trade negotiator, told reporters that his department planned to “complete the ratification process, including Senate approval, by next year because we have the [national elections] in 2022 “.
Before the RCEP goes into effect, “there should be at least six ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) [members] to deposit the instrument of approval or ratification and at least three external partners of ASEAN ”, he explained.
All 10 Asean members – Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – as well as Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea, signed the agreement. November 15.
The DTI has stated that the RCEP would improve the country’s competitiveness in the export of agricultural products, auto parts and clothing.
The pact, he said, would increase the accumulation of certain products and would benefit the country’s micro, small and medium enterprises (MIPYMES).
A chapter of the agreement is dedicated to the institutionalization of support and cooperation aimed at the inclusive growth of MSMEs.
Gepty said sectors expected to benefit from RCEP include manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, auto parts, electronics, aerospace, creative industries, and information technology and business process management.
Once in force, the RCEP would represent 27.8 percent of world trade ($ 10.5 trillion) and 23.6 percent of inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI) and 33.5 percent of the IED outflows.
RCEP countries accounted for 60.6% of the Philippines’ total merchandise trade and 11.4% of FDI inflows last year.
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