Philippines now 'a good value proposition' – Tetangco
“Today, the Philippines is a good value proposition for investments, both domestic and foreign,'' - Bangko Sentral Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr.
Riding on governance reforms, the Philippines is attracting the confidence of foreign and domestic investors, the country’s economic managers told reporters in a briefing Tuesday.
Big investors are coming in this year, officials said, citing a host of reasons why investments will soon be pouring into the country that has always played the sick man of Asia in political and economic terms.
“Today, the Philippines is a good value proposition for investments, both domestic and foreign,'' said Bangko Sentral Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr.
Government's commitment to good governance helped improve trust and build confidence among investors to do business in the Philippines, according to the central bank chief.
Philippine bureaucracy is now more transparent, Tetangco noted.
“We have made the economy structurally fit to enable it to sustain its gains,” he said.
Infrastructure spending to pump prime the economy, robust consumer spending and a stable banking system have kept the economy growing, he added.
New investments
Big investors are coming in this year, officials said, citing a host of reasons why investments will soon be pouring into the country that has always played the sick man of Asia in political and economic terms.
“Today, the Philippines is a good value proposition for investments, both domestic and foreign,'' said Bangko Sentral Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr.
Government's commitment to good governance helped improve trust and build confidence among investors to do business in the Philippines, according to the central bank chief.
Philippine bureaucracy is now more transparent, Tetangco noted.
“We have made the economy structurally fit to enable it to sustain its gains,” he said.
Infrastructure spending to pump prime the economy, robust consumer spending and a stable banking system have kept the economy growing, he added.
New investments
Five Japanese companies are expanding their operations, and 10 are new investments in electronics, shipbuilding and steel manufacturing, according to the Trade secretary.
Domingo reported that committed investments, both domestic and foreign, reached P650 billion in 2011, up P150 billion from P500 billion a year earlier.
Apart from good economic fundamentals in terms of inflation, foreign exchange remittances from overseas Filipino workers and earnings from business process outsourcing, Tetangco said the country remains good for investments because of its young, vibrant and skilled workforce.
Government expects significant improvement in public spending and project execution this year, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said at the same briefing.
“As of end-January this year, we already released P150 billion to all departments or 71 percent of the government's capital outlay in 2012 compared to only P7 billion during the same period in 2011,” he said.
Construction activities will pick up this year, creating jobs, said Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga. “This is where we will spend a lot of time,” Paderanga noted.
Big-ticket projects
Big-ticket projects
Government also set aside P19.6 billion in counterpart funds for the public-private partnership (PPP) program, half of which will go to the Department of Transportation and Communications, he said.
There are now 16 big-ticket projects under PPP, including the construction and rehabilitation of airports, seaports, highways, railways and water supply, according to the National Economic Development Authority, also headed by Paderanga .
Another consequence of reforms is the 13-percent increase government revenues last year, with no new taxes or asset sale, said Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima.
“The rise in revenues and savings from debt service last year reduced the government's deficit to P197.8 billion or 2 percent of GDP compared to the P300-million program for the year,” Purisima added. — VS, GMA News
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