AMCHAM Statement on AEC preparations of the Philippines
August 15, 2014 at 12:16
On July 20, 2013, the House Committees on Economic Affairs and Trade and Industry invited the Joint Foreign Chambers to the joint hearing on House Resolutions 666 and 746, inquiring into state of preparedness of the Philippines for the new obligations of the ASEAN Economic Community.
TAPP prepared the attached AmCham statement, informing Congress of the view of foreign business chambers that AEC, AFTA, and related free trade agreements present enormous opportunities to Filipino companies, no matter how large or small, to grow larger through exports to billions of customers by taking advantage of these free trade agreements.
The statement, which was presented by TAPP SA Forbes during the August 5 joint hearing, urging the Committees to study and advocate practical solutions to improve the investment climate by reducing or removing impediments placed by the public sector that hinder firms in the Philippines from fully realizing the potential of these FTAs. It discussed the following categories of impediments, which increase the cost of doing business and make it difficult for domestic enterprises to compete with imports and export competitively to foreign markets:
· Power costs;
· Transportation costs;
· Holiday;
· Smuggling;
· Taxes;
· Regulations; and
· Internet Speed.
