In the Philippines, industrialistas are bullish about the prospects of getting tuna and carrageenan included in this year’s list of product covered by the US Generalized System of Preferences (GSP). Inclusion in the GSP list will cut the existing 10-30 percent t on canned tuna to 5 percent.
"We are quite confident that canned tuna and carrageenan will be included in the list of US GSP based on the original purpose of GSP which is to give opportunities to developing countries to develop their agricultural products like carrageenan," said Pete Bora, spokesperson of SIAP.
The chances of canned tuna being included in the GSP list also got a big boost with the Bush administration dangling the privilege to countries supportive of its crusade against terrorism, especially its planned assault against Iraq.
Philippine exporters are processing documents required by the Washington-based US Trade Representative Office (USTRO) for specific industries that want to qualify for the GSP. Philippine officials are confident of the tuna inclusion in the GSP list because the USTRO has expressed its preference for just two agriculture products – tuna and carrageenan.
The two products should have been submitted by the Bureau of International Trade Relations (BITR) to USTRO last year but the tuna industry asked for a postponement, pending the completion of its documents. Inclusion in the GSP list will bring down the 10-to-30 percent tariff on canned tuna to just five percent.