MANILA (Bloomberg): The Philippines hopes to secure a trade agreement with the US when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. discusses a planned US tariff during his meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington, according to a Manila official.

Marcos will also seek to bolster US-Philippine security ties during his July 20-22 visit, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for American Affairs Raquel Solano said at a briefing on Friday.

The trip by Marcos, set to be the first Southeast Asian leader to visit Trump during his second presidency, comes after the Trump administration increased the tariff on Philippine goods to the US to 20% from 17% starting in August, raising concern from its longtime ally.

Ahead of Marcos, Philippine government officials including Trade Secretary Cristina Roque flew to Washington this week for tariff talks. “We hope of course to arrive at a bilateral trade agreement or a deal on reciprocal trade that is mutually acceptable, mutually beneficial for both our countries,” Solano said.

The Philippines initially held trade talks with the US in May in its bid to lower an earlier threatened 17% levy in April. To secure that, Roque had said Manila plans to increase imports of US farm goods, including soybeans and frozen meat, and boost exports of semiconductors, coconut and mango products to the US.

“We will continue to underscore that for the Philippines to be a truly strong partner for the United States, we need to be stronger economically as well,” Solano said. Trump and Marcos will discuss “closer cooperation in economic, defense and security matters of common interest,” she added. 

The issue on the South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing are locked in competing maritime claims, will also be tackled, Solano said, as well the possible deployment of military assets in the region. — ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.