Fil-Am firms feel US tariff pinch, count on `quiet diplomacy' tack

Fil-Am firms feel US tariff pinch, count on `quiet diplomacy' tack

SAN FRANCISCO — Some Filipino-owned businesses here that import goods from the Philippines could still absorb the costs of the newly-imposed baseline tariff,  a move that the Filipino-American chamber of commerce in this city fears will be unsustainable in the long run. US President Donald Trump announced on April 2 a 17-percent “discounted reciprocal tariff” for the country, which is still lower than the 34 percent levy it imposes on goods comi…