Foreign Bizmen Maintain Investment Appetite in PH: Lopez

Foreign businessmen have maintained their investment appetite in the Philippines, unchanged since the Duterte administration took office two years ago, the country’s top trade official said.

In an interview with the Philippine News Agency, Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said that nothing has changed in the interest of foreign investors to locate their businesses here. “It’s still the same,” Lopez said, when asked whether the appetite of investors to operate in the Philippines has improved or decreased.

He added that the interest of foreign investors remain despite the issues on the war on drug of the administration, the weakening of the peso, increasing inflation, tax reform, and the ongoing discussion on federalism, among others. “The macroeconomic fundamentals are still there. The reforms we’re undertaking, they see that as long-term improvement,” the trade chief said.

The official mentioned that the second package of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) is seen to level the playing field by rationalizing fiscal incentives, in which tax perks given by government will be for economic activities that really need support.

“That’s good for many investors particularly to those who do not have the intention to avail the incentives. I think they are over 90 percent that are not after incentives. That’s in terms of number of companies,” said Lopez.

He added that the lowering of corporate income tax rate under the CTRP Package 2 is also attractive to investors. “There are those that are seriously looking [into investing]. They are now looking for location. They are ready to come in anytime just that location has to be found,” Lopez noted.

He mentioned that two big steel manufacturers in China are scouting for locations in the Philippines, particularly in Bataan and in Mindanao. A Japanese shipbuilding firm is also eyeing expansion in the country.

Lopez pointed out that the strong interest of foreign investors to do their businesses in the Philippines is reflected in the government’s data, such as foreign investment pledges approval in the Board of Investments (BOI), as well as foreign direct investments (FDI) data.

BOI data showed that its approvals of foreign investment commitments in the first half of the year surged by 165 percent to PHP14.5 billion from PHP5.5 billion in the first semester of 2017.

During a journalists’ forum Tuesday, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III mentioned that net FDI in the January to May period rose 49 percent to USD4.8 billion this year from USD3.3 billion in the same period last year. (PNA)