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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider PH, Brazil agree to cut by 55% tariff on desiccated coconuts

PH, Brazil agree to cut by 55% tariff on desiccated coconuts

Published Jul 29, 2020 10:00 pm

The Philippines and Brazilian government officials have agreed it is about time to bring down the 55 percent tariff protection the latter has imposed on Philippine desiccated coconuts.

In a webinar on Philippine Export Opportunities in Latin America hosted by the Department of Trade and Industry’s Export Marketing Bureau, Foreign Trade Service Corps, and Philippine Trade and Investment Center-Mexico, officials from both countries discussed on the potentials and challenges in the improvement of bilateral trade.

Philippine Ambassador to Brazil Marichu Mauro and Igor Ferreira Luna of the Brazil Coconut Institute addressed the high 55 percent tariff walls imposed by Brazil on Philippine desiccated coconut exports as against the 10 percent tariff on desiccated coconuts from South American countries.

Despite this discrepancy in tariff rate, Mauro said the Philippines exports $9 million worth of desiccated coconuts to Brazil annually.

Luna said it would be beneficial for both countries if the high tariff walls are brought down. “We have wide background of protection for this sector, it is about time to bring this down,” said Luna after Ambassador Mauro denied of any government subsidy for the agriculture sector or for the coconut sector, in particular desiccated coconuts.

Luna said that considering also the balance of trade in their favor, Luna said there is no reason to keep the high tariff walls against this Philippine export.

“The funny thing is that Brazil has trade balance in 2019 over the Philippines and at the same time Philippines does not impose similar tariffs on Brazilian products,” he said wondering as to how this happened and how to cut down the tariff.

“We should find a way that work at reciprocity toward the Philippines and keep a certain level of protection to our product,” he said.

Despite this obstacle, Luna said that Brazil was able to increase its imports from the Philippines by 20 percent from 2015-2019.

During the webinar, the Philippine Ambassador to Brazil explained to the Brazilian agriculture officials that the Philippines does not grant subsidies to coconut manufacturing and coconut farmers.

“We have no export subsidy entitlements in the schedule of commitments in the WTO in Geneva and we do not apply subsidies to our agricultural exports,” Mauro stressed.

She stressed that if Brazil could lower the tariff, this would mean increase of Philippine desiccated coconut exports to and help stabilize its market for food products because Brazilian consumers will have easy access to these products and consumers can have more choices.

In this time of uncertainties because of the coronavirus pandemic, Mauro pointed out that lowering the tariff could benefit both countries.

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