Metro Manila, Philippines – The Philippines on Saturday, March 14, said it will participate in the United States investigation on economies that supposedly failed to take action on forced labor.
The Philippines is among the 60 economies under investigation by the Office of the United States Trade Representative over whether their governments have failed to effectively prevent the importation of goods produced with forced labor.
READ: US probes PH, 59 others over forced labor imports
The US will seek consultations with the governments under review and hold public hearings on April 28.
Malacañang said the Department of Trade and Industry has taken note of the ongoing Section 301 unfair trade practices probes of 60 countries by the US.
“We will closely monitor and actively participate in the investigation to address the concerns of the United States,” Trade Secretary Cristina Roque said in a statement shared by the Palace.
The US is the country’s top trading partner.
In 2025, an estimated $17.8 million worth of Philippine exports went to the US, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative.
Key Philippine exports include semiconductor devices and computer peripherals.
The US Supreme Court struck down US President Donald Trump’s global tariff scheme.
Following the court ruling, Trump announced a new 10 percent global tariff, which has been threatened to be raised to 15 percent.
The country’s economic team previously said it will have a continued engagement with the US on that development, eyeing to make trade and investment relations “stable and predictable.”
