PEZA-approved investments down to P35 billion in 2 months

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

March 7, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Investments approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) in the first two months of the year dropped by 33 percent from a year ago, but the agency remains hopeful of achieving a double-digit growth in investment registrations this year.

In a statement yesterday, the PEZA said that it cleared P35.37 billion worth of investments in the January to February period, 33 percent lower than the P52.93 billion approved in the same period last year.

The approved investments are for 52 projects, 33 percent higher than the 39 projects approved in the same period in 2025.

The approved projects cover manufacturing, information technology – business process management (IT-BPM); logistics; facilities development and ecozone development.

These projects are expected to generate $10.44 billion in exports and 5,049 jobs.

The approved investments include pledges from firms from South Korea, Indonesia, the British Virgin Islands, China and Japan.

“While PEZA is cautiously optimistic about achieving double-digit growth in investment approvals this year, the approval of 52 new and expansion projects already underscores the continued diversification of industries within our ecozones and the steady expansion of investments across the countryside,” PEZA director general Tereso Panga said.

For the month of February, PEZA approved P22.51 billion in investments, down slightly from P22.78 billion in the same month last year.

PEZA-approved investments in February are for 34 new projects, higher than the 26 projects cleared in the same month in 2025.

Projects approved in February are projected to generate $10.38 billion in exports and 4,044 direct jobs.

The newly approved projects involve export manufacturing; IT-BPM; facilities development; logistics; domestic market; tourism; and ecozone developments.

These will be located in Metro Manila, CALABARZON, Central Luzon, Cagayan Valley, Central and Western Visayas and the Ilocos Region.

Amid geopolitical tensions and volatility in global energy markets, PEZA is adopting a cautious outlook for the rest of the year.