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EU open to pursuing free trade deal, GSP+ discussions with Philippines: OPS

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<p>MANILA - The European Council welcomes President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr&#x27;s push for a free trade agreement and the renewal of Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) accreditation, according to the Office of the Press Secretary. </p><p>Both trade deals allow member nations to access goods at attractive levels of tariffs, sometimes zero, enhancing the transfer of products. </p><p>Marcos met with the European Council President Ursula Von der Leyen on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-European Union (ASEAN-EU) summit in Belgium. <br/> <br/>The OPS quoted Von der Leyen saying that the GSP+ &quot;would open the door for much easier start into going into free trade agreement negotiations.&quot;</p><p>During the meeting, Marcos said he expects the expansion of the FTA talks between the Philippines and the bloc as well as the renewal of the country&#x27;s GSP+ status. </p><p>A GSP+ status allows the Philippines to export to the EU without duties or with reduced tariffs. The preferential GSP+ status was given to the Philippines in 2012, the OPS said.</p><p>The status allowed the country duty-free export of some 6,000 eligible products to the EU market. The status retention is subject to compliance with international agreements.</p><p>The Philippines has sought the renewal of its renewal of the GSP+ participation and has expressed intent to pursue FTA talks.</p><p>&quot;Let&#x27;s work on it,&quot; Von der Leyer told Marcos, according to the OPS statement. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/16/17/eu-reviews-philippine-trade-perks-tied-to-human-rights">EU reviews Philippine trade perks tied to human rights</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/15/22/marcos-touts-investment-pledges-after-asean-eu-summit">Marcos touts new partnerships, investment pledges after ASEAN-EU summit in Belgium</a></li></ul><p>The EU earlier announced that the Philippines was included in the list of countries eligible for renewal of the GSP+ status provided that it implements 27 international core conventions on labor rights, human rights, good governance, and the environment, the OPS said.<br/> <br/>&quot;While the Philippines awaits the resumption of the PH-EU Free Trade Agreement negotiations, we remain committed to maintain our EU GSP+ beneficiary status, serving as a stepping-stone towards this FTA,&quot; the President told European business leaders.</p><p>The negotiations for the EU-Philippines FTA started in 2016. The last round of discussion was held in 2017.</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2381914" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

The European Council welcomes President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr's push for a free trade agreement and the renewal of Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) accreditation, according to the Office of the Press Secretary. 