British Chamber sees electronics, fruits gaining from trade scheme

THE British Chamber of Commerce Philippines (BCCP) said the UK’s new trade scheme will benefit Philippine products like electronics and processed fruit with the launch of a new trading scheme on June 7.

BCCP Executive Director Chris Nelson said that the Philippines could climb the ranks of UK trading partners with the launch of the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).

“There is significant trade in electronics, coconut oil, processed fruit, and spectacle lenses. Currently, the Philippines is ranked 64^th in terms of the trade with the UK. I can see that going up significantly,” Mr. Nelson said.

UK government data puts Philippine exports to the UK at 2.4 billion pounds in 2022, up 26%.

The DCTS will replace the UK’s Generalized System of Preferences trading scheme. The new trading scheme will benefit 65 developing countries.  

“The DCTS will be removing 150 of the tariff lines. It will cover an area of over 3.3 billion people. Particularly for the Philippines, it will continue to grow trade that’s already doing extremely well,” Mr. Nelson said.

“The Philippine economy will continue to grow and do well, and that’s also supported by the various economic reforms that have occurred, and we see further liberalization occurring,” Mr. Nelson added. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave