The Philippine Embassy announced Monday that a Filipino trade delegation headed by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be visiting Saudi Arabia to bolster trade relations between the Philippines and the Kingdom.

“I am happy with the upcoming visit of the delegation since it will boost the trade relations of the two countries,” Philippine Ambassador Ezzedin Tago told Arab News.

The 27-man delegation will be led by Market Officer Grace L. Demdam from the Bureau of Export and Trade Promotions representing DTI along with a number of representatives from 16 private Philippine companies. They will promote Filipino-made products including food items and cosmetics.

The embassy stated that this is not the first time that the Philippines has held trade talks with the Saudi government.

Last March, a group of business experts, the first of its kind, visited the Kingdom and successfully sealed a deal resulting in sales of $45 million which far exceeded the projected amount of $12 million.

Ambassador Tago said that the Philippines and Saudi Arabia have good trade relations.

“We are currently ranked 11th among the trading partners in the Kingdom,” he said. “The Kingdom, on the other hand, ranks 31st for its exports which totaled $ 86 million in 2012 and is ranked 8th as a source for our imported goods,” he added.

The group is set to hold talks with the Saudi Chambers of Commerce in Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah from Oct. 30, 2013 to Nov. 7, 2013.