Despite all the political noise and drama that has defined the past two years of the Duterte administration, American magazine U.S. News and World Report said in a report published last month that the Philippines was the best place in the world to invest in.
“In contrast to the declining inflows of foreign direct investment to Southeast Asia as a whole, the Philippines continued to perform well,” the report said, citing United Nations data.
In this year’s report, Southeast Asian countries bagged four out of the five top spots.
The top five include:
1) Philippines
2) Indonesia
3) Poland
4) Malaysia
5) Singapore
“In the years to come, the country is expected to receive more direct investment from within the region from powerhouses like China that are looking to utilize available labor in developing nations,” the report said.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said on Monday that “strong macroeconomic fundamentals and infrastructure spending” were the main reasons for the Philippines’ ranking as the best country to invest in.
He also said that the “young and hardworking workforce, an excellent inclusive growth momentum, an expanding middle class, politically stable environment, strong and popular leadership, fiscal discipline, stable monetary policy, ASEAN membership, strong anti-corruption drive and improved revenue collection” were other reasons for the country’s improved economic environment.
The report studied a total of 80 countries across 75 metrics. It was done in partnership with global marketing and communications firm BAV Group and the Universty of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.
U.S. News and World Report is a Washington D.C.-based magazine that publishes news, opinion, consumer advice, rankings, and analysis.
See the full list here.
