Subic exports up 50% in first semester

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT– The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority posted an impressive performance during the first half of the year with high increases in exports, investments, jobs created, revenue collections and tourist arrivals to live up to its reputation as the leading economic zone in the country.

In a report to Malacañang, SBMA chairman Felicito C. Payumo said Subic Freeport posted a 50-percent increase in exports valued at $701 million, created 10,200 new jobs, P1.58 billion worth of new investment up by 150 percent and 169 percent more tourists with 4.5 million visitors. Combined revenue collection by the Bureau of Customs and the Bureau of Internal Revenue went up 19 percent from P1.262 billion in 2001 to P1.561 billion this year.

The SBMA board approved 81 business proposals ranging from manufacturing, trading, information technology services, restaurant operations and other tourism-related businesses amounting to P1.5 billion in the first six months of the year.

Comparative statistics showed that the amount of investments increased significantly by 150 percent from the previous P600 million covering the same six month period last year with the entry of more investors and expansion projects of existing locators in the freeport zone.

New Japanese firms, Juken Sangyo and Sankyo Seiki have sought expansion of its manufacturing plants from 4.7 hectares to 8.8 hectares and 6.6 hectares to 9.6 hectares, respectively.

The SBMA was able to generate 10,200 new jobs from January to June bringing the total number of freeport workers hired by various investors here to 49,922 or a 29.1 percent increase over last year’s 38,650 to support the government’s poverty alleviation program.

To add the employees of SBMA and its subsidiary, the Freeport Service Corp. the over-all number of workers reached up to 54,922 which is about 80 percent higher than the peak employment level of 30,000 during the US Navy days.

"The freeport is on the right track with its job creation mandate being the core of President Arroyo’s poverty alleviation program," Payumo said.

The SBMA Labor Center has introduced innovative programs to provide easier employment access to residents of nearby communities through series of job fairs conducted in provinces of Bataan, Zambales, Pampanga and Bulacan.

P1.56-billion revenues

The combined revenue collections derived from customs duties and other taxes collected by the Bureau of Custom (BOC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) increased by 19 percent from the last year’s P1.2 billion to P1.56 billion in first six months this year.

"Subic Freeport has contributed over P1.5 billion to the National Treasury in just six months from taxes collected particularly on tariff and customs duties of imported products shipped here," Payumo added.

BOC district collector Felipe Bartolome said the Port of Subic was able to generate more revenues this year posting a 46-percent increase of total cash collection amounting to P1.2 billion as compared from last year’s figure of P823 million.

The opening of new foreign manufacturing plants and expansion of existing firms led to a 49.1 percent increase in export value during the first semester at $701 million from last year’s $470 million. The new figure is close to the yearend figure of $1 billion, which the freeport posted for three consecutive years.

Top producers include Wistron Infocomm. Phils. (formerly ACER), maker of personal computers and laptops; Japanese computer parts-maker Sanyo Denki, air conditioner producer Taiwan Hitachi and wood processor Juken Sangyo.

Subic appears to be the top favorite among other tourist destinations in country particularly this summer season with more than 4.5 million local and foreign tourists visiting the freeport’s latest tourism attractions like the Ocean Adventure and other co-tourism oriented facilities.

The SBMAA tourism department head Armin Santos said tourist arrivals surpassed last year’s figure by a whooping 169 percent in the first semester of the year from 1.7 million tourist arrivals last year.

Santos said Payumo has changed the "total landscape" in the tourism sector from the traditional beaches and (duty-free) shopping to more eco-friendly tourism facilities like whale shows, jungle trekking and adventure sports which have become the alternative attractions for tourists from "all walks of life."

Development projects

The World Bank funded P810 million massive infrastructure projects like the construction of roads and bridges, improvement and rehabilitation of existing road networks are now nearing completion that would enhance the Freeport as a viable site for investments.

The on-going development project is part of the long-term master plan providing "Intermodal Transpark" with the contruction of the $425 Subic-Clark toll road, and the $215 port modernization program to be funded by the Special Loan Package from the Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC) and improvement of Subic Bay International Airport.

These are also in conjunction with the Information Communication Technology (ICT) projects of SBMA such as the Ortho-GIS program to support the Land Resource Information System aiding the management of the vast ecosystem of Subic.