The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) registered P91.8 billion in foreign investments in January to October, a 21 percent increase from P76 billion in the same period in 2023.
PEZA data showed this is equivalent to 74 percent of the investments approved by the agency for the period.
These numbers indicate a resurgence in FDI, with increasing numbers of projects backed by foreign equity from both new and existing ecozone investors, PEZA said.
The agency expressed optimism of a strong rebound of FDIs in the final quarter of the year, despite the 14.5 percent contraction in FDI inflows reported by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in August.
PEZA banks on the rapid setup time for ecozone manufacturing facilities, saying some of these projects are expected to begin construction and commercial production within the year.
It is also looking forward to the implementation of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy (CREATE MORE)
Act which it said will further accelerate FDI inflows and growth in the economic zones.
“This momentum in ecozone FDI should contribute significantly to higher realized foreign investments, impacting the country’s balance of payments positively through current and financial account transactions from export-oriented ecozone companies,” PEZA said.
