The Philippine Board of Investments (BOI) is expecting a further upsurge in investments registration in the coming months with the anticipated approval of about 44 more projects in the pipeline worth Php52.03 billion.
Trade Secretary and BOI Chairman Ramon Lopez said this positive development augurs well with the administration’s socio-economic agenda of uplifting the lives of the Filipino people. “More investments mean more jobs, ensuring economic development from the bottom of the pyramid,” he said.
“The continued growth of the investments is a testament of the country’s sound economic fundamentals and sustained investor confidence,” said Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Ceferino Rodolfo adding that investments coming in are insectors that will elevate the country’s competitiveness, such as in various resource-based sectors.
“What we are seeing in the real sector that relies on fundamentals of the economy, the fundamental strengths of the economy, is that growth is being sustained or even accelerated,” said Undersecretary Rodolfo.
Already been evaluated and checklisted by the BOI’s Industry Development Services, these projects for registration will be coming from the energy sector (Php29.57 Billion or 57 percent of total investments); manufacturing sector (Php7.77 Billion or 15 percent share); agriculture sector (Php6.58 Billion or 12 percent share); real estate activities sector (Php6.37 Billion or 12 percent share); logistics or water transport (Php1.07 Billion or 2 percent share); and other varied sectors (Php665.30 million or 1 percent share).
Last month, the BOI reported that investments registered with the agency reached Php51.03 Billion in September 2016, up by 193 percent from only Php17.41 Billion generated in the same month in 2015.
The increase in investments for the month was due to the approval of two big ticket projects namely the Light Rail Manila Corporation’s Php30.37 Billion Public-Private Partnership project for the operations and maintenance of the Manila Light Rail Transit 1 Integrated Railway System-Cavite Extension and the Energy Development Corporation’s Php16.42 Billion wind energy resources project in Iloilo.
Undersecretary Rodolfo said this development will greatly uplift the lives of the Filipino people. ”The mass transport project for example, will be a big help for the commuting public while the renewable energy projects will improve and sustain the quality of life of the people,” he said.
On a year-on-year basis, BOI-approved investments grew 49 percent in the first nine months of the year to Php286.44 Billion compared with the Php192.39 posted the same period last year. The investment pledges were generated from 255 projects with total estimated job generation of 46,716 at full operations.
The largest share of approved investments from January to September 2016 is intended to finance projects in the power sector which accounted for 48 percent share to total approved investments during the period. The other sectors that topped the list of investment approvals include construction with Php62.27 Billion or 22 percent; real estate activities including the mass housing sub-sector with Php36.68 Billion or 13 percent share; the manufacturing sector with Php21.02 Billion or 7 percent share; and transportation andstorage sector with Php14.31 Billion or 5 percent share.
Major manufacturing sub-sectors, based on their respective shares to total investment approvals from January to September 2016 include food products (Php8.99 Billion or 43 percent share); motor vehicles/ trailers (Php7.80 Billion or 37 percent share); fabricated metal products (Php1.98 Billion or 9 percent share); wood products (Php1.48 Billion or 7 percent share); and other manufacturing sub-sectors (Php763.18 Million or 4 percent share).
Topping the list of foreign country investors in the first nine months of 2016 is Singapore with investments worth Php12.90 Billion or 26 percent share to total approved foreign investments. Netherlands came in second with investments amounting to Php8.00 Billion (16 percent share), followed by Japan with Php6.83 Billion (14 percent share), South Korea with Php6.42 Billion (13 percent share), and United Kingdom with Php2.34 Billion (5 percent share) and the balance shared by various country investors such as British Virgin Islands, Germany, U.S.A., India, China, Canada, Taiwan, etc.
While the National Capital Region tops the list of regional investments worth Php74.13 Billion or 26 percent share to total approved investments, other regions are likewise gaining headway particularly Region 3 which came in second with committed investments worth Php45.16 Billion, accounting for 16 percent. Significant investments were also directed to Region IVA (Php32.95 Billion or 11 percent share); Region VII (Php20.78 Billion or 7 percent share); and Negros Island Region (Php19.26 Billion or 7 percent share).