The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is enticing Indian firms to set up shop in the Philippines to capitalize on the new trade deal among Asia-Pacific economies that New Delhi failed to sign.
In a speech on Thursday, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez called on Indian investors to look to the Philippines for partnerships in the infrastructure sector. He said there are six public-private partnership (PPP) rail projects that India can assess for its consideration.
“India was encouraged to consider the opportunities in Philippine infrastructure and construction given the complementaries in the sector,” Lopez explained at the Business Conference on India-Philippines Infrastructure Cooperation.
Likewise, he relayed the interest of Philippine firms to participate in the modernization of India’s ports and development projects under the Sagamala and the Bharatmala Projects. As such, he argued there’s cooperation that can be maximized between Manila and New Delhi in terms of infrastructure buildup.
“To this end, we invite you to look into possible partnerships with local construction companies for the development of infrastructure and construction projects in India,” Lopez said.
“We would like to point out that construction and related engineering services was our top export product in the 1970s. As such, our companies have built and continue to build famous landmarks and structures globally.”
Further, Lopez said Indian investors can take advantage of the Philippines’ membership in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
India abandoned its plans to sign the RCEP on domestic protests that the trade deal would hurt the supply and demand for its local goods. The Indian government formally withdrew from talks in 2019, and the RCEP would be later on signed in 2020.
“Given that India did not pursue its memberships in the RCEP, Indian businessmen can still benefit from the mega free trade agreement through the Philippines’s own participation,” Lopez said.
“Once it is effective, RCEP is expected to boost intra-regional investment and trade with ASEAN expected to play a vital role in the agreement.”
The trade chief concluded it would benefit both economies if they improve their trade activities, especially at a time the Philippines and India are suffering the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. India has the second worst Covid-19 situation with nearly 11 million infections and at least 156,000 deaths.
The DTI is expecting lawmakers to ratify the RCEP this year. Once ratified, the trade deal would remove tariffs on most of exports to and imports from RCEP economies, namely, the Southeast Asian nations, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea.