The Philippine Economic Zone Authority said it expects investments in the economic zones to rebound 10 percent this year following a 16.2-percent slump last year.
PEZA said investments approved by the agency declined to P117.54 billion in 2019 amid investor concerns over the second tranche of the tax reform law or the Corporate Income Tax and Incentive Rationalization Act.
“We are projecting a conservative growth of 5 to 10 percent though we’re about to approve big-ticket industry projects like the Panhua Integrated Steel and Canada’s North Star Agro-industrial Company in our next meeting,” said PEZA director-general Charito Plaza.
Plaza also cited pending applications for expansion and new projects by existing locators but said they were still on wait-and-see mode over the CITIRA bill.
“That’s why we’re praying for the wisdom of the senators and the bicameral committee who will decide on the kind of the CITIRA law. We are expecting investments will be higher if an investor-friendly CITIRA is passed,” Plaza said.
Chinese steel maker Panhua Group Co. Ltd. is expected to sign a locator’s contract with PEZA within the week for the first phase of the integrated steel project worth $3.5 billion in Misamis Oriental.
Canadian firm North Star Valley Food Company is also looking for agricultural economic zones to establish cacao, avocado, mango, strawberry and raspberry plantations.
A 60-man American delegation will visit PEZA in February to explore investments in agro-industrial economic zones.
PEZA is the largest export investment promotion agency in the country contributing 63 percent of total commodity exports. Its locators also contribute 16.28 percent to the gross domestic product.
PEZA said some 1.5 million Filipinos are directly employed and another 7.5 million indirectly employed by economic zones and locators in the country.
It is also one of the top contributors of dividends to the national government among investment promotion agencies.
