A joint trade committee (JTC) meeting was held earlier this week between officials from Vietnam and the Philippines to discuss a possible collaboration in the manufacturing of garments for exports and the further expansion of their current markets.

Trade Undersecretary Ceferino S. Rodolfo said that the committee discussed how the Philippines could help Vietnam in light of the latter’s participation in major trade arrangements with the European Union and the remaining member states of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

They discussed the possible expansion of the current coverage of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) with the United States in order to include goods that were “important” to the local market such as garments and leather goods.

They also talked about joining forces for a common advocacy so they can expand the GSP of the US to cover more goods but noting that the raw materials could possibly be sourced from Vietnam.

Vietnam has been ramping up the production capacity for textiles in anticipation of the TPP. However, since the US has pulled out of the mega trade deal, there was a lot of room to fill in.

They are discussing possibilities so that their textile could be brought here and then the resulting garments here would be exported to the US and the EU.