MORE than 300 South Korean locators under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) have contributed P53.9 billion in investments to the country.
The agency announced the contributions of South Korea (officially Republic of Korea), one of East Asia’s economic powerhouses, to the Philippine economy as it renewed its call for more investment partnerships in the face of the new normal brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Among the companies registered with Peza, there are 320 South Korean locators contributing P53.982 billion in investments, including $1.095 billion in exports and employment of 42,675 workers as of September 2021.
“We are not letting this crisis hinder us; rather, we continue our relentless efforts to attract and invite investors. We establish new partnerships as well with various government agencies so that we may be able to urge more local and foreign investors to do business in the Philippines by improving the efficiency factors for investments,” Peza Chief Charito Plaza said in a press release.
Philippine Ambassador to South Korea Maria Dizon-De Vega reported that the pandemic did not hamper the Philippines’ economic relations to South Korea, stating that “in 2020, the Republic of Korea was the fifth major trading partner of the Philippines (out of PH’s 225 trading partners), seventh biggest export market (out of 213 PH’s markets) and fourth largest import supplier (out of 205 PH’s suppliers). The total bilateral trade was valued at $13.92 billion.”
Complementing various efforts implemented by Peza and the national government to continue reviving the economy, South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Kim In-chul and Ambassador De Vega, along with the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Seoul, also encouraged Korean companies to look into the Philippines for more investment opportunities especially in advanced and future-centric industries with the finalization of the Philippine-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
“When the FTA takes effect, a framework for future-oriented collaboration will be created not only to promote trade and investment between our two countries but also to tackle the spread of infectious disease and climate change together,” Kim said.