The Philippines and the European Union are committed to advancing talks on a free trade agreement (FTA), Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said Monday.

In a joint press conference with visiting EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas in Makati City, Manalo said both the Philippines and EU are eager to deepen economic ties and utilize the future FTA to further boost trade and investment.

“Noting the firm commitment of both sides in advancing negotiations, I expressed the Philippines’ hope for the continued support of the EU and its Member States toward the early conclusion of negotiations of a comprehensive, balanced, and modern FTA,” he said.

The two sides finished two rounds of negotiations in October last year and February this year, with the next set of talks scheduled for the third week of June in Brussels, Belgium.

Earlier, the EU Delegation in Manila said the bloc wants to see an early conclusion of the FTA in the wake of global trade uncertainties fueled by the new tariff policies of the United States.

Based on the data of the European Statistical Office (Eurostat), the EU-Philippines bilateral trade in 2024 increased by 3.8 percent to 16.8 billion euros from 16.2 billion euros in the previous year.

EU imports from the Philippines grew by 3.1 percent to 9.1 billion euros, while its exports to the Philippines increased by 4.7 percent to 7.7 billion euros.

Of the total Philippine exports, at least 2.2 billion euros were exported using the EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+), which grants the Philippines zero percent tariffs for almost 7,000 EU product lines.

This brings the Philippines’ GSP+ utilization rate to a record high of 80 percent in 2024.

Electronic products remain the main export of the Philippines to the EU in terms of value, at 6.3 billion euros in 2024. (PNA)