Phl to continue to attract FDIs, enjoy strong growth – HSBC
Updated January 19, 2017 – 12:00am
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MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines will continue to attract foreign direct investments and enjoy strong growth despite the anti-drug war of President Duterte which has affected the perception of foreign investors on the Philippines, said British banking giant HSBC.
In a press briefing, Fan said FDI inflows would remain strong on the back of the robust Philippine economy. “Economy will continue to deliver robust growth,” she said.
FDIs slowed in October as a result of external shocks, declining for the second month in a row but the January to October tally posted growth, latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.
Inflows declined 14.3 percent to $342 million in October from $399 million a year ago, but for the 10-month period, FDI inflows grew 22.2 percent to $6.22 billion from $5.09 billion in the same period in 2015.
Fan said growth would continue to create business opportunities for foreign players which would translate to growth in inflows.
Asked if Duterte’s anti-drug war could create negative impact on FDIs entering the Philippines, Fan said this may only be in the short term.
“But in the medium term, FDIs will be driven by fundamentals,” she said.
China will be the country’s major source of FDIs.
HSBC expects a 6.5 percent growth for the economy this year, higher than the original projection of 6.3 percent.
The British bank also raised the projected GDP growth for last year to 6.8 percent from the original forecast of 6.5 percent.
This is despite an uncertain external environment and weak regional growth.
