Following its decision to impose 19 percent, a token one percent reduction from the original 20 percent reciprocal tariff, on Philippine exports to the US, the Trump administration announced at least PHP3 billion, approximately USD60 million, in foreign assistance to the Philippines to support the country’s energy, maritime, and economic growth programs.
The U.S. embassy in Manila released the announcement issued by the U.S. Department of State following Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Washington, D.C., on July 21.
This is the U.S. government’s first announcement of new foreign assistance for any country since the Trump Administration began its review and realignment of foreign assistance in January, the statement added.
As part of this at least PHP3-billion initiative, Secretary Rubio also announced that the U.S. Department of State intends to work with the U.S. Congress to allocate PHP825 million ($15 million) to catalyze private sector development in the Luzon Economic Corridor. If approved, this funding will support investments in the areas of transport, logistics, energy, and semiconductors that will help create jobs and drive economic growth in the country.
President Marcos’s meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in Washington, D.C., this week reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to the U.S.-Philippines Alliance and advanced closer economic ties between the two nations, the statement concluded.
