PH-Jordan ink USD60.7-M worth of deals

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and the members of his delegation sing the Philippine National Anthem during the welcome ceremony at the Al Husseinieh Palace in Amman, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on September 6, 2018. Joining the President is Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein. KING RODRIGUEZ/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

MANILA – Filipino and Jordanian firms inked some USD60.68 million worth of deals, including memorandums of agreement and letters of intent.

In a statement Friday, Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said these deals are expected to yield economic cooperation between Manila and Amman in the sectors of logistics, mobile-related service solutions, robotics, and information and communications technology.

“This visit is a milestone for both countries, especially in the areas of trade and investments. It is paving the way to attract investments from a non-traditional partner and encourage more businesses from both countries to explore economic opportunities,” Lopez said.

The biggest of the eyed project in the country is from Nafith International, a logistics planning and operations provider.

The trade chief said the Jordanian firm eyes to locate its regional office in the Philippines, investing some USD50 million.

Universal Labs Ltd. also wants to put up a manufacturing facility for Dead Sea products in the country to be exported in other Asian markets.

“We would like to keep the momentum and hype up the interest level of companies to engage and join our growth story.

We look forward to this expanded relationship with Jordan that will result in deeper cooperation not only in trade but also on the exchange of best practices on new technologies and business process management,” Lopez said.

Before going to Jordan, President Duterte also witnessed the signing of USD82.9-million worth of business agreements between the Philippines and Israel.

The Philippine delegation was able to secure a total of USD143.58 million worth of business deals from companies in Israel and Jordan during this week’s visit there by President Rodrigo Duterte.