Trump noted the two countries would also expand military cooperation but did not provide specifics. Marcos, the first Southeast Asian leader to visit the White House during Trump’s second term, said the U.S. remained the Philippines’ “strongest, closest, most reliable ally.”
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The new 19% tariff is slightly below the 20% rate Trump had previously threatened but above the 17% rate announced in April as part of his broader push for reciprocal trade measures. It aligns with the rate recently imposed on Indonesia and is just under Vietnam’s 20%.Last year, the US recorded a nearly $5 billion goods trade deficit with the Philippines on total bilateral trade worth $23.5 billion. Trump said the two countries “do a lot of business” and expected those “very big numbers” to increase under the new trade agreement.
During the Oval Office event, Trump said he may visit China for a landmark trip “in the not-too-distant future” and noted the Philippines had distanced itself from Beijing after his election last November. “The country was maybe tilting toward China, but we un-tilted it very, very quickly,” Trump said.
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The U.S. president has sought to lower tensions with Beijing in recent weeks after pausing a tit-for-tat tariff war that has upended global trade and supply chains. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday he would meet with Chinese officials in Sweden next week.
Critics warn Trump’s tariffs on nearly all foreign goods could boost prices for U.S. consumers, complicating his push for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. No comment was immediately available from Marcos, who did not speak to reporters before leaving the White House grounds.
