Philippines pitches nickel supplies to India as part of export diversification

India should source nickel for making batteries from the Philippines at a time when the Southeast Asian country is diversifying from 98% dependence on Chinese buyers, Filipino foreign minister Enrique Manalo has said. The Philippines and India should also accelerate negotiations for a preferential trade agreement as Manila is keen to deepen engagement with Indian businesses in areas such as automobiles, batteries, value-added IT and ITES services, pharmaceuticals, health and agriculture, Manalo said in an interaction with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry on Monday. We are quite interested to see India become a player in our nickel sector, not just for export diversification but crucially for processing and development of a value chain.” India has imported raw nickel worth about $707 million from Russia, Norway and Japan, Manalo noted while suggesting an opportunity for supply chain realignment. “We are keen to transition from these scoping exercises to the actual negotiations of a preferential trade agreement that will certainly help drive growth upward.” Two-way trade between India and the Philippines was worth $3.5 billion in 2024, witnessing 8.6% year-on-year growth, with the balance favouring Indian exporters.