Philippines
Investvine–Mar 12, 2018
The Philippines recorded another all-time high in foreign direct investments (FDI) in 2017, although the growth was substantially lower than in 2016. The volume reached $10 billion last year, up by 21.4 per cent compared to 2016.
“Investors continue to view the country as a favorable investment destination on the back of the country’s sound macroeconomic fundamentals and growth prospects,” the Philippine central bank said.
The Philippines has been reporting record-breaking levels of inward foreign investments since 2013. But it was in 2017 when growth was markedly lower compared to 2016’s 40.7 per cent. This was partly owing to a drop in FDI in debt instruments in December last year.
Most of the investments came from the Netherlands, Singapore, the US, Japan and Hong Kong and were made in gas, manufacturing, real estate, construction, as well as wholesale and retail trade.
A recent ranking by U.S. News and World, a media group that publishes news, rankings and analyses on a number of topics, listed the Philippines as “best countries to invest In” for 2018 out of a list of 80 countries globally, citing “a young and hardworking workforce, an excellent inclusive growth momentum, an expanding middle class, politically stable environment, strong and popular leadership, fiscal discipline, stable monetary policy, ASEAN membership ASEAN, an achievable infrastructure programme, a strong anti-corruption drive and improved revenue collection.”
However, some economists are not joining the universal praise.
“The Philippines may have been named the top investment destination for 2018, but the government must provide more impetus particularly for foreign investors and encourage them to pour capital into the country,” Alvin P. Ang, director of the center for economic research and development at Ateneo de Manila University, said. “We still have a lot of problems, the focus is for local companies but for foreign companies there are limited options,” he said, adding that “we are moving along that line, but that cannot be achieved in a year’s time.”
