By Rose de la Cruz
The Philippine Statistics Authority said foreign investment pledges to the country’s Investment Promotion Agencies, except those by Filipino nationals, contracted in the first quarter of 2024 by 63.6 percent to P148.43 billion, a steep decline from the P408.22 billion approved in the same quarter 2023.
The highest investment commitment approved came from Singapore at P70.06 billion or 47.2 percent, followed by the Netherlands at P38.89 billion or 26.2 percent and South Korea at P20.23 billion or 13.6 percent.
The biggest decline in investment pledges for the period came from Germany with 100 percent; Birth Virgin Islands, 95.4 percent and France, 94.9 percent.
Investments from Japan also contracted by 75.9 percent to P920.93 million and the United States by 35.3 percent to P1.16 billion.
Approved investments from Taiwan quadrupled at 523.1 percent, China art 453 percent and Canada, 221.2 percent.
Investments from South Korea, the Netherlands and Singapore exceeded 1,000 percent in the first quarter of 2024.
The total approved investments of Foreign and Filipino nationals reached P309.45 billion, a decrease of 35.6 percent from the P480.48 billion in the same quarter of the previous year.
Filipino nationals contributed P161.03 billion or 52 percent share to the total approved investments during the first quarter of 2024, Business Mirror reported.
The data also showed approved investments of Foreign and Filipino nationals in the first quarter of 2024 were expected to generate a total of 27,711 employment.
“This indicates an increase of 8.8 percent from the 25,470 expected employment in the same quarter of the previous year. Out of the total generated employment, 23,378 [jobs] would be absorbed by foreign investment projects,” PSA added.
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply industry received the largest amount of approved investments at P109.19 billion or 73.6 percent of the total approved FI.
This was followed by Accommodation and food service activities with P20.09 billion and Manufacturing with P12.62 billion, or shares of 13.5 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively.
Among the regions in the country, Calabarzon received the largest share of pledged investments at P117.39 billion or 79.1 percent of the total approved FI for the first quarter of 2024.
This was followed by Central Luzon with P23.83 billion, and Bicol Region with P2.86 billion. These accounted for 16.1 percent and 1.9 percent of the total FI, respectively.
PSA said the data came from the Board of Investments (BOI), Clark Development Corporation (CDC), Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA), Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).
IPAs that failed to submit their approved investments report were: the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB), Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), BOI-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BOI-BARMM), Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC), John Hay Management Corporation (JHMC), Poro Point Management Corporation (PPMC), Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority (ZCSEZA).