The Board of Investments (BOI) under the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) is reviewing its full-year 2025 targets to factor in the impact of the US reciprocal tariffs, Trade Secretary Cristina Roque said on Monday.
She said the DTI is acknowledging the challenges posed by the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US.
“Our export to the US is substantial. That’s another thing that we have to consider. But we try to look at the positive side. We try to be more strategic also in our approach to make sure we reach our targets,” Roque added.
In January to May, investments registered with the BOI stood at P329 billion, down by a steep 48 percent from P640.22 billion a year earlier.
In a statement on Sunday, the investments board said that during the rest of the year, it expects to register P1.12 trillion worth of more projects.
However, Roque, who is also the BOI chair, told reporters on the sidelines of the signing ceremony of the joint memorandum circular creating the interagency Investment Facilitation Network, she remains confident the BOI would still be able to reach the original target of P1.75 trillion this year.
In 2024, the BOI surpassed its P1.5 trillion target, reaching P1.62 trillion, a 28.5 percent increase from P1.26 trillion in 2023.
“Based on our strategies we’re hoping that we will hit last year’s (target). We just have to make sure that we get it done,” Roque said.
“We try to be more strategic, also, in our approach. We want to attract both foreign and domestic investors, and not just the big ones,” she added.
The BOI said it is doubling its efforts to take part in local and international trade fairs, and send out investment missions to the US, Japan, Middle East, China and Europe.
