President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s foreign trips this year have reportedly resulted in investment pledges totaling $23.6 billion, according to Malacanang on Friday.
According to the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) annual report on accomplishments, Marcos’ state visits to Indonesia and Singapore, his business trip to the United States, and his attendance at the ASEAN Summit in Cambodia and the APEC meeting in Thailand “brought billions of pesos in investments as the administration gears toward aggressively attracting more foreign businesses to come to the Philippines.”
Marcos met with the local business communities on these trips abroad in an effort to attract foreign investors.
Marcos had stated that multiple letters of intent and memorandums of understanding had been inked with Singaporean and Indonesian companies for investments totaling P804.778 billion.
The Palace further claimed that Marcos’ business trip to New York in September would result in investments worth close to $4 billion.
Leaders in the food and agriculture industries from Cambodia were also asked to invest in the Philippines by Marcos. Marcos and the business executives met on the margins of the ASEAN Summit.
Foreign visits of Marcos generated $23.6-B investment pledges
According to Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual, on the sidelines of the APEC Summit, Thai businesses have indicated their desire to increase their presence in the Philippines.
On the other hand, according to the DTI’s report, its Board of Investments and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) have a combined approved investment of P402 billion, which is expected to result in the creation of 54,217 local jobs.
As of August of this year, the BOI’s authorized projects under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act totaled P46.7 billion. The investment board also provided support to 1,994 investors looking to establish a business in the nation.
The BOI also produced 90 leads for foreign investments with a potential value of P204.9 billion, which could create 98,393 employment locally.
The national budget of P5.268 trillion for 2023 was approved by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. last week.
A few members of Congress, including House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, Vice President Sara Duterte, and Marcos, witnessed the signing of the 2023 General Appropriations Act in Malacanang.
Visit our Facebook page for more news updates.