In doing this, the Philippine automotive sector would be able to present to their Japanese principals, who are all members of the Japan Automotive Manufacturers Association (JAMA), a better appreciation of the Philippine position on the automotive sector.
In turn, JAMA is expected to be the one to convince the Japan’s Ministry on International Trade and Industry (MITI) on the Philippine position.
Trade and Industry Senior Undersecretary Thomas G. Aquino said the private sector contingent, who will be meeting officials of the JAMA in Tokyo, will be led by Vicente Mills, president of the Philippine Automotive Federation Inc., the umbrella organization of the Philippine automotive industry.
Other members in the delegation include Elizabeth Lee, president of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc., Henry Co (president of the Ford Group in the Philippines) representing the Truck Manufacturers Association, Feliciano Torres, chairman emeritus of the Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturers Association of the Philippines, representatives from the Motorcycle Development Program Participants Association and the Motorcycle Components and Parts Association.
These industry officials will explain to their principals in Japan the Philippine position on the automotive sector as the only way in which the automotive sector in the Philippines can survive under the JPEPA regime.
"We hope that this trip of the industry leaders will settle once and for all the issues of the automotive sector and pave for the signing of the JPEPA in December this year," Trade and Industry Undersecretary Elmer C. Hernandez said.
This intervention from the private sector was resorted to after the two government parties have refused to budge on their respective positions.
The Philippine government has stood pat on its position, which is a unified position of the government and the domestic automotive industry that was submitted to the MITI.
The Philippine position has called the possibility of no zero tariff by 2010 on all auto categories as tariffs have to be renegotiated in 2009. The Philippines also wants a firm commitment from each Japanese car company to assemble 2 completely knocked down (CKD) models in the country.
This means that automotive tariffs for completely built-up packs with engine sizes of below 3 liters will follow the 1-3-3-3 percentage points tariff reduction for a total of 10 percent tariff cuts on the fourth year of the JPEPA using as basis the current 30 percent most favored nation tariff on CBU imports.
Originally, the Philippines had agreed to a sudden death by 2010 for CBUs at below 3 liters.
But the Philippines had agreed to carry the industry position, which is to renegotiate all automotive tariffs by 2009.
The same position has been adopted for CBUs with engine sizes of 3 liters and above. The previous position was to maintain the automotive tariffs and sudden death or zero rate by 2010.
In addition, Japanese car companies must retain two CKD model for local assembly to ensure their continued assembly operations in the country even beyond 2010.
The issue on the automotive sector is one of the two remaining contentious issues in the JPEPA negotiation, the other being the movement of natural persons wherein the Philippines would like Japan to formalize its offer on opening up the services sector for Filipino workers.
