Peza-approved investments down 33% to P35.37B
Investment approvals by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) fell 33.18 percent in the first two months of 2026, even as the agency approved more projects and saw projected exports surge.
Peza said it had approved P35.37 billion worth of investment pledges as of February, down sharply from P52.93 billion recorded in the same period in 2025.
Projected job generation also plummeted to 5,000 from 11,063 jobs a year earlier.
This came despite a 33.33-percent increase in the number of approved projects, which rose to 52 from 39, indicating smaller capital commitments per project.
Projected exports, meanwhile, jumped to $10.44 billion from $274.96 million in the same period last year.
Peza Director General Tereso Panga said the agency was “cautiously optimistic” about achieving double-digit growth in investment approvals this year, a mark it surpassed in 2025 with a 21.91-percent increase.
Peza has initially set a P300-billion target for investment approvals in 2026, which would represent a 15-percent increase from the P260.89 billion it registered last year.
However, Panga said the agency was prepared to adjust this target if needed, particularly amid global trade uncertainty linked to tensions in the Middle East.
“Peza remains confident in the Philippines’ long-term competitiveness,” he said. “The Authority is closely monitoring global economic developments and stands ready to recalibrate its investment targets if necessary to reflect evolving market conditions.”
February approvals
For February alone, Peza approved 34 projects worth P22.51 billion, nearly matching the P22.78 billion approved in February 2025 across 26 projects. These projects are expected to generate $10.38 billion in exports and create 4,044 jobs.
Peza said the January-to-February approvals came from 40 locator companies in manufacturing, IT-BPM, logistics and facilities development, as well as 12 ecozone development projects.
In terms of foreign investments, South Korea led the list of investment sources, followed by Indonesia, the British Virgin Islands, China and Japan.
The agency said a significant portion of the year-to-date approvals came from three big-ticket projects that together accounted for P18.37 billion in investments.
These projects cover tourism, domestic market enterprise and ecozone development and will be located in Bulacan, Pampanga and Tarlac.
Expanding ecozones
Beyond investment approvals, Peza said ecozone development would be a key growth driver for the agency this year.
With more than 430 ecozones under its management, Peza said ecozone development accounted for 33.18 percent of cumulative investments from top ecozone locators and developers from 1995 to 2025.
“By strategically expanding and modernizing our ecozones across the archipelago, we are laying down the infrastructure backbone of a more resilient, regionally balanced and globally integrated Philippine economy.”
