According to the Philippine Business World on June 17th, some analysts believe that the Philippine government should expand fruit production to promote agricultural exports. According to the Philippine Bureau of Statistics, agricultural product exports increased by 10.7% in the first quarter of this year, reaching 1.72 billion US dollars, of which fruit exports amounted to 520 million US dollars, accounting for over 30%. However, former Deputy Minister of Agriculture Adriano of the Philippines stated that the agricultural budget lacks support for exporting agricultural products, and 60% of the Ministry of Agriculture's funds are used to support rice. Richard Ford, Chief Economist of Li Cha Commercial Bank, stated that the Philippines should sign free trade agreements with more countries on the basis of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the South Korea Philippines Free Trade Agreement to achieve export diversification. According to Lanzona, an economics professor at Athens University, the Philippines has a long-term agricultural trade deficit and the economy is still heavily reliant on food imports. The Philippine Ministry of Agriculture stated in January this year that it was formulating an agricultural export development plan, especially to expand the export of tropical fruits such as bananas, mangoes, and pineapples.
