MANILA, Philippines — Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges in the country’s economic zones continued to contract in the first quarter, as lingering uncertainties brought by the pandemic continue to spook investors. The government approved a total of P19.55 billion FDI pledges from January to March, down 32.9% year-on-year, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Thursday. The data was the lowest recorded since the first quarter of 2018 when FDI pledges amounted only to P14.21 billion. FDI pledges are bets placed on the country’s ecozones, whose key attraction are tax holidays and other perks. Breaking down the PSA's first quarter report, P25.4 billion worth of pledges were approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), the country's largest ecozone operator.

Source: Philippine Star June 03, 2021 09:59 UTC