Taiwanese investment in Philippines suffered steep decline over 2018

Taiwan News
Date: 2019/06/24
By: Duncan DeAeth, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – In an effort to encourage the Philippines to consider economic reforms to attract more foreign investment, Alfred Wang, an economic counselor at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines, has stated that Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand are more attractive markets for Taiwanese investors.

According to the counselor, investors find regulations in the Philippines to be too “burdensome,” making markets in Vietnam and other Southeast Asian nations far more competitive.

Wang says that the Taiwanese government is doing what it can to attract investment in the Philippines as part of the Tsai administration’s New Southbound Policy.

Wang notes that the country possesses a young, robust labor force with a high level of English competency. However, the minimum wage in the Philippines remains too high for many potential investors when compared to other regional economies.    [FULL  STORY]