Philippine envoy to Washington said the country intends to negotiate a reduction in tariffs with the United States

The Philippines’ ambassador to the US announced Thursday that the country intends to negotiate a reduction in tariffs with Washington following the US’s decision to levy higher 20% charges on goods imported from Manila.

“We are still planning to negotiate that down,” Jose Manuel Romualdez stated in a previous phone call.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday sent tariff warnings for August 1 to a number of trading partners, including the Philippines, imposing a 20% duty instead of the 17% originally promised.

To the question of what rate the Philippines is considering, he replied, “Will see.”

In 2024, the Office of the United States Trade Representative estimates that U.S. goods trade with the Philippines totaled $23.5 billion.

The Philippines’ imports totaled $14.2 billion, up 6.9% year over year, while U.S. exports to the Philippines totaled $9.3 billion, up 0.4% from 2023.

As a result, the U.S. goods trade deficit with the Philippines increased by 21.8% to $4.9 billion in 2024 in 2024.

The Philippine president’s administration did not immediately provide a statement.