DTI in talks with firms on possible investments in PH

The Philippines can take advantage of some manufacturing companies’ plans to relocate their business from China to other countries, said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), which is currently talking to more than 100 firms that might be interested to locate here.

During the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (PCCI) online membership meeting on Tuesday, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez emphasized that taking advantage of these plans did not mean “we will steal investments from China,” but rather have these firms “consider the Philippines as a complementary site” for their business.

According to him, the government is talking to 135 Chinese and non-Chinese companies.
Of these, 16 are based in the city of Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province — where the coronavirus disease 2019 first broke out — and manufacture electronic equipment, appliances, metal products and auto parts, among others.

Lopez said 64 companies located in other parts of China planned to relocate because of the effects of the trade war between Washington and Beijing. These firms produce medical devices, optical lenses, appliances, bicycles and furniture.

The remaining 55 manufacture medical devices and other Covid-19-related products.
“We want to present the Philippines as a complementary host country, and one important thing also is we want to accelerate the conversion of these interests into realization,” the Trade chief said.

He noted, however, that there was a need to address some issues affecting the country’s business environment.

“It is important to immediately pass Create (Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act),” Lopez said, referring to the recalibrated version of the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Reform Act, or Citira.

The proposed tax law pushes for the immediate reduction of the corporate income tax from 30 percent to 25 percent. It also seeks to extend the applicability of the net operating loss carryover for losses incurred in 2020 from the current three years to five. This extension would allow companies to deduct incurred losses from tax payments for a longer period, providing them more time to set their finances in order.