1 of 7 | President Donald Trump holds a bi-lateral meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. Photo by Yuri Gripas/UPI | License Photo
July 22 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said the United States has struck a trade deal with the Philippines following a White House meeting with the island nation’s President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
Trump announced the deal in Truth Social post on Tuesday that he said involves the Philippines dropping all tariffs on imported U.S. products.
As part of the deal, the tariff rate of goods imported from the Philippines into the United States will be 19%, just slightly lower than the 20% levy Trump outlined in a letter earlier this month. It’s also higher than the 17% that Trump imposed on the Philippines as part of his Liberation Day tariffs announced in April.
In his post, Trump described the meeting as a “beautiful visit” and called Marcos a “very good, and tough, negotiator.”
The Philippine government has not confirmed the deal or issued any statement on the results of the talks.
The meeting was the first of its kind between an Association of Southeast Asian Nations head of state and Trump since his return to the U.S. presidency.
The Philippines was one of the many countries who faced a Trump-imposed tariff increase by Aug. 1. Marcos was expected to utilize his nation’s strong relationship with the United States to improve the trade deal between the two countries.
Marcos’ visit has also focused on defense and security, which was discussed Monday as he visited the Pentagon. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with Marcos, and in a Defense Department press release, it was stated the two “reaffirmed their commitment to the U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty and discussed shared security concerns in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as recent advances in the long-standing U.S.-Philippines alliance.”
“Our storied alliance has never been stronger or more essential than it is today,” said Hegseth in the release. “Together, we remain committed to the mutual defense treaty.”
“And this pact extends to armed attacks on our armed forces, aircraft or public vessels, including our Coast Guard, anywhere in the Pacific, including the South China Sea,” continued Hegseth.
Marcos also met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said in an X post Monday that they discussed “how the [United States] and the Philippines are strengthening our ironclad Alliance to advance our shared safety, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.”
As for any meeting with representatives of the American Filipino community, the press release notes Marcos won’t be able to, due to his tight schedule.