The Department of Trade and Industry expects an influx of foreign direct investments under the Marcos administration.
Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo said that while the Philippines had lagged in terms of FDI generation in the ASEAN region, it improved its ranking in 2021.
“Back in 2012 to 2017, we were number six in the ASEAN [in terms of FDIs]. But if you look at 2017 to 2021, we are already number four,” Rodolfo said Thursday during the launch of a new World Bank report on trade dubbed as “A New Dawn for Global Value Chain Participation in the Philippines.”
According to the revised FDI data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippines generated $12.5 billion net FDI inflows in 2021, which shoved it to the fourth highest spot in the ASEAN next to Singapore, which was at the top of the ranking, followed by Indonesia and Vietnam.
Rodolfo said the government was banking on the country’s improving macroeconomic fundamentals to further raise direct investments into the Philippines.
Recent state visits paired with trade and investments roadshows were instrumental in getting more investments into the country, he said.
The recent US roadshow, led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., garnered at least $3.9 billion in fresh investments.
The US ranks as the third biggest trading partner of the Philippines with a total trade of $108.7 billion from 2016 to 2021 and fourth top source of FDI at $1.35 billion over the same period.
It is also the Philippines’ largest source of overseas Filipino remittances, with over four million Filipinos living and working in the US.
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