The Apprentice

Our officials involved in trade negotiations with the US are in frantic damage control mode.

- BOO CHANCO

BBM himself was trying hard not to sound disappointed after his meeting with Trump.

"One (percentage point) might seem like a very small concession. However, if you put it into real terms, it is a significant achievement," BBM said in a news conference after his Trump meeting. But BBM must know he and his team should have done better.

Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto also got a 19 percent tariff from Trump but a much larger drop from their current 32 percent. And he didn't have to give them military bases or go to Washington DC but only talked to Trump by phone.

Trump was patronizing BBM as he kept praising him as a tough negotiator. But he showed the world he was an even tougher negotiator.

Trump posted on Truth Social: "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 percent tariff."

Trump most likely understood it as total capitulation.

In terms of trade, our share of US imports last year was a minuscule 0.04 percent of their total imports. We mean nothing to them in this regard.

But the US is the top destination for our exports, accounting for 16.6 percent of our total exports. The US is extremely important for our small export sector.

We may have prematurely offered zero tariff to the US in the hope the Americans will suggest or agree to a free trade agreement.

But BBM clarified later to newsmen that the zero tariff only covers a limited number of products like cars, soya, wheat and pharmaceuticals.