DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/28 February) – Approved Chinese investments in the country in 2018 reached P50.692 billion or higher by 2,072 percent compared to the P2.333 billion recorded in 2017, according to a data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Thursday.
Investments from China comprised 28.3 percent, the highest, of the P179 billion in total foreign investments approved last year.
Singapore came in second with approved investment pledges worth P21.181 billion. Japan pledged P19.727 billion in investments; British Virgin Islands, P16.165 billion; Malaysia, P14.652 billion; United States of America, P12.858 billion; Taiwan, P4.2 billion; United Kingdom, P3.81 billion; France, P2.561 billion; and Australia, P2.410 billion.
These figures were based on the pledges approved by the Board of Investments, Clark Development Corporation, Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan, BOI-Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority.
Manufacturing emerged as the most preferred investment area with P85.
124 billion or 47.6 percent of the of the total foreign investments. Electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply came in second most preferred with P30.
048 billion.
The other investment areas are administrative and support service activities, P20.118 billion; real estate, P20.055 billion; construction, P8.8 billion; wholesale and retail trade/ repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, P5.468 billion; transportation and storage, P3.781 billion; information and communication, P3.
115 billion; accommodation and food service activities, professional, scientific and technical activities, P687.3 million; accommodation and food service activities, P554 million.
Northern Mindanao cornered P64.605 billion or 36.1 percent of the total foreign investments; CALABARZON, P42.331 billion or 23.7 percent; National Capital Region, P37.462 billion or 20.9 percent; Central Luzon, P21.286 billion or 11.9 percent; and Central Visayas, P3.728 billion or 2.1 percent. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)
