Philippines reduces rice import tax to 15 pc

Hanoi - The Philippines, one of the world's largest rice buyers and biggest importers of the Vietnamese grain, officially announced a reduction in rice import taxes from 35 per cent to 15 per cent, effective in early August this year and lasting until 2028.

This can be seen as the latest action by the Philippine government to tackle inflation, especially increasing rice prices in the market so far this year.

In the first quarter of 2024, the Philippines’ economy was relatively stable, except for the price increase of some essential consumer goods, particularly rice, which saw an increase of about 24.4 per cent. The rice prices account for approximately 9% of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of the Southeast Asian country.

According to the Vietnam Trade Office in the Philippines, the country is Vietnam’s largest buyer to date, accounting for over 80 per cent of the total rice imported into the Philippine market.

Vietnam exported 1.44 million tonnes of rice to the Philippines as of May 23, accounting for 72.9 per cent of the total import of the grain of the country. The reduction of rice import tax by the Philippines is said to increase opportunities for Vietnamese rice in the market.

Latest data from the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Plant Industry, the Philippines' total rice imports rose by 20.3 per cent to 1.97 million tonnes in the reviewed period. The country’s total rice imports are estimated to reach about 4 million tonnes in 2024.

The Philippines’ immigration bureau on May 15 announced that it had deported 165 Chinese citizens who were accused of working in an online scam centre based in Bamban in the north of the country.

The Philippines is short of about 190,000 health workers while many decide to work overseas, Philippine Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said on May 22.

Vietnam is in Group B together with Indonesia, Philippines, Myanmar and Laos at the 2024 ASEAN Cup, according to the results of the official draw that was held in Hanoi on May 21.