Despite weeks of high-stakes negotiations, the US offered only a symbolic concession in the trade deal clinched by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr as he wrapped up his Washington visit on Tuesday, only agreeing to lower threatened tariffs from 20 per cent to 19 per cent.

“It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs. The Philippines will pay a 19% tariff,” Trump said, announcing the cut on his social media account.

The deal has not yet been confirmed by Manila. Marcos left the White House without making any public remarks about a deal. No joint statement from the leaders’ meeting has been issued yet by either side.

Securing a favourable trade deal to shield Philippine exports from the looming economic blow was Marcos’ top agenda item for the visit as he aimed to leverage the decades-old security ties to get a tariff discount.

Trump in his post emphasised that in addition to the trade deal, the two countries “will work together militarily”, while lauding Marcos as a “tough” negotiator.

The US trade deficit with the Philippines widened to US$4.9 billion in 2024, a 21.8 per cent jump from 2023.