Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 10) — Foreign direct investments declined by a “slight” rate in February, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Monday.
FDIs reached $608 million during the month, 2.2% lower than the $621 million recorded in February last year.
On a cumulative basis, foreign investments in January and February this year totalled $1.6 billion, higher than the $1.3 billion recorded in the same period the year prior. Debt instrument placements mainly drove the two-month growth, BSP said, surging by 67.7% annually to $1.1 billion.
For the month of February alone, the slight decline from the year before “emanated mainly from the 88.3 percent drop in non-residents’ net investments in equity capital to $20 million,” the central bank noted in a statement.
Equity capital placements fell year-on-year by 62.1% to $89 million during the second month of the year, while withdrawals surged to $69 million or a 13.6% jump annually.
However, foreigners placed more funds, $515 million, into debt instruments in February. This was up by 36.1% from last year’s figure, the BSP said, adding this tempered the slowdown in foreign investments during the month.
Reinvested earnings likewise expanded by 6.1% in February, hitting $72 million.
Equity capital investments were mostly made from Singapore, Japan, the Netherlands and the United States, noted the central bank, and were funneled mainly to financial and insurance, manufacturing, and real estate industries.
