Ecozone investments surged 334% in August
Investments approved by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) jumped more than fourfold in August to P64.57 billion, putting the agency closer to hitting its P300-billion full-year target with four months left in 2026.
According to Peza, its August approvals, spread across 22 new and expansion projects, marked a 334.13-percent increase from P14.87 billion in the same month in 2025.
This increase was driven primarily by nine big-ticket projects worth a combined P62.05 billion, or 96.1 percent of total monthly approvals.
“These results are a clear vote of confidence in the Philippines’ capacity to compete for high-value investments,” Peza Director General Tereso Panga said in a statement. “We will sustain this momentum and continue turning investor confidence into tangible economic opportunities for Filipinos.”
From January to August, Peza approved 196 new and expansion projects, up 9.5 percent from 179 projects in the same period last year. These are expected to generate $6.60 billion in exports and create 26,994 direct jobs nationwide.
Manufacturing accounted for the largest number, with 80 projects, followed by 31 ecozone developments, 30 information technology-business process management projects, 19 facilities projects and 15 logistics ventures.
Outside the Philippines, Peza said its largest source of investments were the Netherlands, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan.
Of the 196 projects, 34 were tagged as big-ticket investments, with a combined value of P193.71 billion.
Among the nine big-ticket projects approved in August were two facilities enterprises in Tarlac with combined investments of P35.39 billion and two electronics and semiconductor manufacturing services projects in Laguna worth more than P3 billion.
Four new ecozone development projects worth a combined P22.39 billion are also planned in Cavite, Bataan, Davao del Sur and Cebu, while a billion-peso export-oriented enterprise venturing into the domestic market will locate in Tarlac.
In terms of actual performance, Peza-registered ecozones generated $32.89 billion in exports in the first half, up 2.35 percent year-on-year. Direct employment likewise increased 1.56 percent to 1.82 million workers.
The surge in August approvals boosted Peza’s bid to reach P300 billion in investments in 2026, a target set by the Department of Trade and Industry at the start of the year.
If met, this would mark a 15-percent increase from the P260.89 billion in approvals recorded in 2025.
As of August, Peza had approved P216.46 billion in investments, or 72.16 percent of its full-year target. This was also 104.53-percent higher than the P105.83-billion recorded in the same eight-month period last year.
