Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez stressed that the Philippines continues to be among the top attractive investment destinations for American investors during his presentation at the Philippine Trade and Investment Forum held on 20 April 2022 at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C.
“The series of meetings we had recently were investors from the US. There is a multitude of further investment opportunities that US companies are now considering, ranging from telco towers, satellite services, data centers for hyperscalers, renewable energy, green metals such as nickel and copper processing, and zinc battery manufacturing, IT-BPM, artificial intelligence, electronics and medical devices, automotive, creatives, and e-commerce,” the Trade Secretary said.
In his presentation, he also highlighted key economic reforms that the administration under President Rodrigo Duterte has passed in the last six years, including the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Act, Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act (RTLA), and the Foreign Investments Act (FIA) that make the Philippines a more attractive investment destination and bolster the country’s business climate.
Aside from this, the trade chief also cited the Public Service Act (PSA), which relaxes foreign equity restrictions for key sectors such as telecommunications, shipping, air carriers, railways, and subways.
“This game-changing reform will attract more players in these sectors, after being protected for over 85 years, and this should lead to better quality services and lower prices for the people,” Secretary Lopez underscored.
Sec. Lopez also mentioned the move to allow more foreign equity participation in renewable energy projects and EO 127 that liberalized the provision of satellite services to further improve broadband connectivity.
Additionally, the Trade Secretary presented the country’s preferential access to major markets through its free trade agreements (FTAs) with other nations and its inclusion in the US GSP and European Union’s (EU) Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+), that are further making the Philippines an attractive location for manufacturing activities as the Rules of Origin will give the Philippines a locational advantage.
The trade chief added, “Amidst the pandemic, the Philippines has also been proactive in enhancing strategic bilateral and regional relations with other trade partners, like the continuation of bilateral FTA with Japan and that of European FTA (EFTA) and the recent conclusion of the negotiation for the Philippine-South Korea FTA.”
Secretary Lopez reassured the forum that the Executive Branch is working closely with the Senate concurrence to the ratification of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement that covers the ten ASEAN countries and five ASEAN FTA partners, including Japan, China, South Korea, New Zealand, and Australia.
The forum was attended by Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez, who gave the opening remarks, and Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs and Projects Vince Dizon. Also present were National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon, DTI Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo, Philippine Honorary Consul to the State of Florida Henry Howard, former US Ambassador to the Philippines Thomas Hubbard, US-ASEAN Business Council CEO Ted Osius, US Philippines Society Executive Director Hank Hendrickson, and members of the US-ASEAN Business Council and US Chamber of Commerce.
Finally, Secretary Lopez underscored, “As this administration draws to a close, we shall be leaving behind a stronger Philippine economy despite the pandemic. We have a legacy of sound policy directions, reforms, roadmaps, and programs that will help steer the country’s trade and industry sector toward sustainable and accelerated growth.”
“Despite the upcoming national elections signifying a change in administration, the Department assures its continued end-to-end assistance to possible investors as you reap the benefits of the strong economic fundamentals laid down by the Duterte administration,” the trade chief concluded.