PEZA investment approvals down 23% in Q1

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April 12, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Investment pledges approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) dropped by 23 percent in the first quarter, amid risks stemming from geopolitical tensions.

In a statement, PEZA said it approved P45.53 billion worth of investments from January to March, down from the P58.95 billion cleared by the agency in the same quarter last year.

While the amount of investments declined, the number of approved projects went up to 78 from 66.

The PEZA-approved projects in the first quarter are expected to generate $10.87 billion in exports and 8,496 direct jobs.

These projects cover manufacturing, information technology-business process management, facilities, domestic activities, ecozone development, logistics, tourism and utilities.

Top foreign sources of PEZA-approved investments in the first quarter are South Korea, Indonesia, British Virgin Islands, Taiwan and Japan.

Investments approved by PEZA jumped by 69 percent to P10.16 billion in March from P6.01 billion in the same month last year.

The approved investments last month are for 26 projects involving manufacturing, IT-BPM, ecozone development, logistics and facilities.

These are projected to yield $422.7 billion in exports and create 3,447 jobs.

“This performance reflects sustained investor confidence in the ecozones and in the Philippines as a competitive investment destination, even as global economic conditions remain volatile due to rising energy costs, supply chain adjustments and geopolitical tensions,” PEZA director general Tereso Panga said.

While the total investment value reflects a calibrated pace amid evolving global conditions, PEZA said it expects high-value investments to enter the country’s ecozones.

As the conflict in the Middle East has pushed up global oil prices, as well as operational and logistics costs across global supply chains, Panga said the government is closely monitoring global developments, particularly those affecting energy costs and supply chains and their potential impact on investment flows.

“I’m still confident that we will be able to meet our targets for this year based on our current assessment,” he said.

PEZA is aiming to approve P300 billion worth of investments this year, 15 percent higher than the P261 billion investments approved last year.

“However, if the conflict in the Middle East continues, I certainly believe that there will be global adjustments in the investment decisions of global companies. We are ready for this and we expect it before it even happens,” Panga said.