MANILA - The Philippines and Japan have signed an action plan to further strengthen their industrial cooperation, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said Friday.

Philippine Undersecretary for Industry Development Adrian Cristobal Jr. and Japan Deputy Director-General for Trade Policy Toshiyuki Sakamoto inked the "Action Plan on Industrial Cooperation" on Thursday at the Philippine Board of Investments in Makati City, Metro Manila.

The Action Plan outlines broad initiatives in key areas of interest and cooperation including automobile, manufacturing, micro, small and medium enterprises, services and human resource development.

"These initiatives are geared towards identifying and addressing supply chain gaps between the Philippines and Japan by providing technical and institutional capacity building to domestic industry players," Cristobal said.