PH’s jump in global logistics survey buoys EU firms

MANILA  -European businesses in the Philippines are more optimistic for the rest of 2023 after the country climbed 17 notches in the World Bank’s annual report measuring the performance of the local logistics sector.

The European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) on Tuesday lauded the Philippines’ performance, taking note that it climbed to the 43rd spot out of 139 countries in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI).

“In an increasingly globalized world, seamless and sustainable trade is essential. The chamber further supports measures that will aid logistical efficiency as well as customs and trade facilitation,” the ECCP said in a statement.

The LPI measures the ease of establishing reliable supply chain connections and the structural factors that make it possible, including the quality of logistics services, trade- and transport-related infrastructure, and border controls.

Countries are ranked based on indicators related to customs, infrastructure, international shipments, logistics competence and equality, timeliness, as well as tracking and tracing.

Meanwhile, the ECCP suggested to the Philippine government to improve its logistics sector further through the timely implementation of the 10-year Maritime Industry Development Plan (MIDP), which was updated last month.

The MIDP aims to ensure the development and the expansion of the Philippine merchant fleet, as well as to ensure competency in the country’s maritime human capital.

Aside from that, the ECCP also called on the government to fully operationalize the National Single Window and integrate it with the Asean Single Window.

The two other suggestions from the business group are for the Philippines to uphold the International Commerce Terminology, the internationally recognized set of trade term definitions developed by the International Chamber of Commerce, as well as to officially clarify the lead government agency responsible for matters relating to shipping rates and port congestion.

To date, the Philippines is looking to have its eligibility under the EU’s Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) renewed, vowing its commitment to adhere to the 27 international conventions on human rights, labor, environment and good governance which are requirements for the renewal.

The EU GSP+ is the regional bloc’s preferential tariff system, under which the Philippines enjoy zero duty for more than 6,000 covered products until 2023.

Its renewal has been put into question under the administration of President Duterte, stemming from criticism of his brutal war on drugs and its bearing on the human rights situation in the Southeast Asian country.

According to the Department of Trade and Industry, the Philippines had2.03 billion euros ($2.21 billion) worth of exports under the EU’s GSP+ scheme as of 2021.