PEZA investment approvals plunge 44 percent in H1

MANILA, Philippines — Investment pledges approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) in the first semester fell by 44 percent to P45.48 billion from P80.59 billion the same period a year ago.

In a statement, the PEZA said the approved investments in the first half are for 120 projects, which are projected to create 25,259 jobs and exports amounting to $1.61 billion.

The approved projects cover various sectors such as manufacturing, information technology-business process management (IT-BPM), ecozone development, facilities development and logistics.

In terms of location, the majority or 100 of the approved projects are in Luzon, while 14 are in Visayas and six are in Mindanao.

For the month of June alone, the PEZA Board approved investments amounted to P8.654 billion for 25 projects, 73 percent lower than the P32.56 billion worth of investments approved in the same month last year.

The approved projects in June are expected to generate 5,881 direct jobs and $416 million in exports.

By sector, three projects are in ecozone development, 11 involve export manufacturing activities, six in IT-BPM, three will cater to domestic markets, one in facilities development and one in logistics services.

CALABARZON (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon) remains the preferred destination for the approved projects in June with 15 located in the region.

Three of the approved projects are located in the National Capital Region, while another three are in Central Luzon, one in Naga, two in Cebu and one in General Santos.

“The approval of these projects signals robust confidence in the Philippines’ business environment and economic potential. Furthermore, creating more jobs for Filipinos signifies the agency’s proactive efforts in positioning the Philippines as a premier investment destination in Asia, aligned with DTI’s (Department of Trade and Industry) agenda of promoting employment opportunities through investment growth,” PEZA director general Tereso Panga said.

With the upcoming State of the Nation Address of the President, the PEZA said the business community is upbeat on the prospects of the urgent enactment of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy bill.

Identified as a priority legislative measure of the government, the bill aims to encourage more investments  in priority sectors as provided in the Strategic Investment Priority Plan.