Foreign investment pledges jump 30.1% in Q4 2022

Foreign investment commitments posted a double-digit increase in the fourth quarter of 2022 as the Philippine economy further reopened, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed Thursday.

In a statement, the PSA said foreign investment pledges reached ₱173.61 billion, or 30.1% higher than ₱133.47 billion a year prior.

The investment pledges were approved by the country’s six investment promotion agencies: Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB), Board of Investments (BOI), BOI-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BOI-BARMM), Clark Development Corporation (CDC), Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

Meanwhile, no foreign investment commitments were recorded from during the period in Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA), Poro Point Management Corporation (PPMC), and Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA).

The bulk, or 64.2% of the pledges, came from Singapore, followed by Japan and the United Kingdom.

The information and communication industry is set to gain the highest investment with ₱114.29 billion.

Real estate activities, on the other hand, stand to receive ₱35.57 billion, while manufacturing would secure ₱19.30 billion.

Asked for his insights, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation chief economist Michael Ricafort attributed the improvement in foreign investment pledges to the “reopening of the economy towards greater normalcy with no more restrictions” as well as the government’s move easing foreign ownership in the local market.

This, he said, has led to more economic opportunities and livelihood.

“Thereby enabling foreign investors to be more decisive to locate/invest/expand in the country amid improved economic/business prospects,” he said in a mobile message.

Ricafort said the recent state visits of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. might also have boosted investment commitments.

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