MANILA (Reuters) -Relations between Manila and Beijing have soured under Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, with Manila pivoting back towards the United States which supports the Southeast Asian nation in its maritime disputes with China.

Chinese companies are still interested to invest in the Philippines despite the nations’ dispute in the South China Sea, a top Manila trade official said on Friday.

Maritime and aerial spats in the South China Sea between China and the Philippines, Washington’s oldest treaty ally in the Indo-Pacific, will be a key talking point in high-level meetings between the U.