Japan manufacturers express keen interest to invest in Philippines

COLLIERS Philippines on Thursday revealed that Japanese manufacturers have expressed interest to invest in the country .

“Over the past 12 months, we also saw major investments being funneled into food manufacturing, e-commerce, and logistics segments. The development of new industrial parks and facilities in central and southern Luzon should provide potential locators with more options and opportunities to haggle for more attractive land leasehold and warehouse lease rates,” Colliers Philippines research director Joey Roi Bondoc said during the presentation of the company’s quarterly report in Makati City.

As of August 2022, Japan, a key trade partner of the Philippines, accounted for 27 percent of total Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza)-approved investments. PEZA expects the expansion of Japanese locators particularly in the chemicals, automotive, computer and optical products, and transport and logistics industries

Bondoc urged developers to explore sunrise industries such as electric vehicles (EVS), a new priority of the Philippine government. Moreover, he said developers must focus and study the progress of the Philippine Development Plan, which covers the development of more ecozones.

“The Philippine government is working on reviving the manufacturing as one of the major pillars of the country’s economic revival. No less than President Marcos has ordered the development of the country’s manufacturing capabilities, and this should benefit the industrial sector in general. Over the near to medium term, the sector’s growth is likely to be supported by investments from new trade deals and the emergence of new industries including the electric vehicle industry. In our view, Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAS) need to further improve the country’s manufacturing competitiveness and business environment to entice more industrial locators,” Bondoc stressed.

He said Colliers recorded a marginal increase in land leasehold rates in the second half of 2022 as e-commerce and logistics firms took up space. In 2023, Bondoc said Colliers expects a continued rise in warehouse lease rates with the potential growth of semi-conductor firms.

Bondoc said Colliers sees vacancy to decline in 2023 as manufacturing investments materialize and gobble up space. He said Colliers expects chemicals and automotive manufacturers, as well as transport and logistics companies to likely occupy more space in the next 12 months.