Safeguard measures placed against imports into Philippines

The Philippine’s Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has begun preliminary safeguard measures against cement imports from Vietnam amongst other countries. As such, the DTI applied duties of PHP8.40 (US$0.16)/40kg bag or PHP210/t (US$4/t). The safeguard measures will be in place for 200 days from 18 January 2019.

Vietnam was the biggest importer of cement into the Philippines between 2014-17. In the first four months of 2018, cement imports from Vietnam accounted for 75.2 per cent of the Philippines’ total, according to the DTI.