MANILA – The Philippines continues to enjoy lower tariffs when exporting certain products to member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).
The EAEU, which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz and Armenia, retained the Philippines among the developing beneficiary countries subject to preferential tariffs under its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) since October 12.
This, even after the EAEU Council decided to reduce the number of developing countries subject to preferential tariffs, which are applied to 75 percent of the basic tariff rate, from 103 countries/regions to just 29.
Countries/regions that have transitioned from preferential tariffs to basic tariffs include Brazil, Vietnam, Hong Kong, India, China, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey, and South Africa.
In an earlier statement, the Department of Trade and Industry-Export Marketing Bureau said products covered by the EAEU GSP are eligible to a 25-percent discount on customs duties.
These include food, furniture, and industrial goods and food products that include meat, fish, fruits, coffee, cacao, coconut products, sauces, and condiments.
Furniture, gifts, and houseware in the list are articles of wood, basket ware, artificial flowers, statuettes, ceramics, and imitation jewelry.
Also included are industrial goods like natural rubber.
Meanwhile, the least developed countries that apply preferential tariffs or are exempt from paying have also been reduced from 50 to 48.
Vanuatu has moved to a regular favored country and Equatorial Guinea was removed.
The EAEU includes high-income countries with gross national income per capita of over USD12,535 and high- and middle-income countries (USD4,046 to USD12,535), classified by the World Bank as criteria for preferential countries/regions.
Established by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union, EAEU provides for free movement of goods, services, capital and labor, pursues coordinated, harmonized and single policy in the sectors determined by the Treaty and international agreements within the Union.
It comprehensively upgrades, raises the competitiveness of and cooperation between the national economies, and promotes stable development in order to raise the living standards of the member states. (PR)
