Foreign investment pledges approved by investment promotion agencies (IPAs) soared by 220.07 percent in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, reflecting a significant increase in investor confidence, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
PSA said Thursday that total foreign investment commitments jumped to P189.50 billion in the April-to-June period from the P59.09 billion recorded in the same period last year. This was the highest level since the P394.46 billion recorded in the fourth quarter last year.
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“This significant increase reflects growing investor confidence in the country’s economic climate, likely driven by government reforms, infrastructure development, and the improving business environment,” Robert Dan Roces, chief economist at Security Bank said.
While these pledges are encouraging, their successful operationalization is crucial to materialize the anticipated economic benefits, Roces added.
Quarterly, approved foreign investment commitments rose by 28.8 percent, up from the revised P147.14 billion recorded in the first three months.
Switzerland was the biggest source of approved investment pledges amounting to P172.04 billion or 90 percent of the overall, followed by Japan with P7.68 billion and Malaysia with P4.53 billion.
Negros Island
These foreign commitments were approved by six IPAs, with the Board of Investments (BOI) leading the way at P175.8 billion.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority approved P14.03 billion worth of foreign pledges. Trailing behind were BOI-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao with P110.1 million, Clark Development Corp. with P107.8 million, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority with P124.1 million, and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority with P49.6 million.
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Should these pledges materialize, these projects are expected to create 26,915 jobs. Of this, 18,135 jobs will be absorbed by foreign investment projects.
The Negros Island will receive the largest portion of commitments amounting to P86.46 billion, while Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) and Central Visayas will get projects worth P6.93 billion and P4.35 billion, respectively.
PSA data on foreign investment commitments differ from the actual foreign direct investments tracked by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for the balance of payments. The BSP’s monitoring includes not only new projects but also reinvested earnings and loans to Philippine units through debt instruments.