Marcos’ foreign trips increase his investment liabilities to P640B. Find out which sector is most popular

The Board on Investments (BOI) registered a total of projects worth P640.22 billion in the first five months of the year, attributing the amount to investment promises made by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. during his official missions abroad.

The BOI said the number of investment approvals from January to May this year increased by 14 percent from the P562.9 billion recorded during the same period in 2023.

“This positive trend can be attributed to various factors, including investment leads generated by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s presidential visits. from 2022. These visits, as well as the efforts of BOI and other Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), have played a key role in transforming potential investment interests into realized projects and foreign direct investments (FDI),” BOI said in a statement over the weekend.

Approved investments from foreign sources amounted to P114.37 billion, while local investors registered investments worth P525.85 billion from January to May 2024.

These investments are expected to create approximately 13,871 jobs.

The largest source of foreign investment during this period is Switzerland with projects worth P62.89 billion, followed by the Netherlands at P39.33 billion, Singapore at P6.07 billion, China at P1.53 billion, and Taiwan at P1.28 billion. P. and United States – P953 million.

“We are actually implementing this in the Philippines. BOI, together with other IPAs, maintains its commitment to generate more investment and maintain FDI growth momentum through ongoing economic reforms and proactive investment promotion,” said Trade Secretary and BOI Chairman Alfredo Pascual.

In terms of sectors, most of the projects are in renewable energy with a value of P607.47 billion.

In second place is agriculture, forestry and fisheries with approved investments of P9.56 billion, real estate of P8.17 billion, transportation and warehousing of P4.61 billion and manufacturing of P4.36 billion.

The top five destinations for these investments were Calabarzon with P538.52 billion, followed by Ilocos Region with P28.49 billion, Central Luzon with P24.42 billion, Bicol Region with P13.28 billion and Western Visayas with P8.54 P billion

“With a favorable business environment and strong investor confidence, the Philippines is well-positioned to further enhance its competitiveness and achieve sustainable economic development,” Pascual said. (PNA)