Marcos courts US businesses

President Marcos said the Philippines is ready to explore new horizons with American businesses as he wooed them to invest in the country by highlighting investor-friendly reforms and a sound economic position.

Marcos said this when he spoke at the 12th International Philippine Economic Briefing in San Francisco on the sidelines of the Asia-pacific Economic Forum (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting on Thursday, Nov. 16 (Manila time).

“With a solid reform agenda and non-abating growth amid headways, the Philippines is ready to take off as a leading investment hub in Asia,” Marcos said. “A welcome opportunity awaits you in the Philippines, and we are ready to explore new horizons with your investments in the coming years.”

Economic transformation

Marcos said that over the past year, the Philippines embarked on a journey toward economic transformation grounded on sound macroeconomic fundamentals, a favorable business climate, and agile risk management.

“More than one year on, in an uncertain global environment beset by slower growth, supply chain disruptions, and geopolitical tensions, the Philippines has continued to rise above the tide,” he said, citing the country's growth at 5.5 percent in the first three quarters of the year. “This is the fastest growth among major economies in Asia, outpacing Vietnam, Indonesia, China, and Malaysia. We are confident that the country will post a full-year economic growth this close to the 6-7 percent target for 2023.”

President Marcos likewise touted the country's strong labor market, particularly the consistently low levels of unemployment and improving quality of employment and underemployment.

Marcos noted how the October 2023 inflation slowed to 4.9 percent from a frighteningly high 6.1 percent in September.

“We are committed to arresting inflation and maintaining overall price stability through supply-side interventions and demand-side management measures,” he said.

Favorable business environment

According to Marcos, his administration has put a favorable business environment at the center of its thrust to promote high-value investments. He added that his government is committed to purposeful economic policy-making and planning reforms.

With the amendments made to the Public Service Act, the Foreign Investments Act, the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, the CREATE Act, and the Renewable Energy Act, the chief executive said he expects an influx of highly desirable investments in strategic sectors of the economy.

“We rapidly reformed that country's private-public partnership framework to simplify the approval processes, ensure the viability and bankability of PPP projects to cut red tape, and pave the way for quality infrastructure development,” Marcos said.