The Board of Investments (BOI) and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza), the country’s two major investment- promotion agencies, are expecting a combined 13-percent growth in investments this year but slower growth of 8 percent is seen next year.
Data obtained from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and presented during the Philippine Economic Briefing showed that the combined investments target for Peza and the BOI for 2015 stands at P719.4 billion, a 13.4-percent improvement over the actual combined investments of P634.2 billion last year.
Of the total, the BOI, which mostly registers domestic-oriented investments, is expected to haul in P390.2 billion, a 10-percent improvement over the actual investments recorded in 2014 at P354 billion.
Peza hopes to net P329.2 billion this year, an improvement of 17 percent over 2014’s P279.5 bilion.
Peza, which caters to exporting firms, have narrowed its deficit in investments to -2.7 percent as of September, and expects several big-ticket American and Taiwanese manufacturing investments to come in the last quarter.
This was echoed by outgoing Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo, who hinted at the establishment of “mega factories” within the year.
The BOI, as of May, has experienced a 20.2-percent growth.
However, for 2016, the outlook is dimmer as both investment-promotion agencies see tempered growth in investment inflow. For the BOI, the investment target is at P417.5 billion, reflecting a slower growth target of 7 percent over the 2015 target.
Peza, meanwhile, also only see a 10-percent growth in 2016, or P362.1 billion. Taken together, the total expected investment haul in 2016 is at P779.6 billion, a contracted growth of 8 percent, compared to 2015’s 13- percent growth
Taken together, the total expected investment haul in 2016 is at P779.6 billion, a contracted growth of 8 percent, compared to the 13 percent seen by year-end this 2015.
According to the DTI, the sluggish growth can be credited to the changes made to the Investment Priorities Plan from 2014 to 2016, which now specified the specific activities of sectors eligible for government incentives.
“For 2016 approved investments is seen to continue to increase but at a slower rate at 7 percent, considering that the Investment Priorities Plan is now more focused and keys in on relatively fewer, more strategic sectors,” according to the DTI’s briefing notes.
From January to June, approved investments of BOI and PEZA have amounted to P170.9 billion, a 4 percent improvement over the comparable period’s haul of P163.8 billion in 2014.
