Aussie companies eyeing biz prospects in Mactan

CEBU, Philippines — A US$30-million hotel and residential project in Mactan, Cebu is among the investments eyed by Australian firms, the Department of Trade and Industry said.

The hotel-residential building is eyed by JBC Ventures.

The 25-storey building project is a joint venture with its local partners to be named Trend International Ocean Tower.

This investment prospect comes amid the optimism of local industry stakeholders on Cebu's future economic growth, particularly the bullish outlook on its tourism sector.

Hotel, Resort and Restaurant Association of Cebu president Carlo Suarez earlier said he expects Cebu’s hotel industry to continue to grow moving forward especially with the upcoming opening of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport’s Terminal 2 which is expected to bring in more visitors to the province.

Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Antonio Chiu had also said Cebu remains an attractive investment destination in the country.

He, however, emphasized the need for Cebu to continuously work on improving its ease of doing business and lowering down its cost of doing business.

He also cited infrastructure as one of the key areas needed to be improved to ensure Cebu’s sustained economic growth in the future.

Meanwhile, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez and Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Allan Peter Cayetano witnessed the signing of letters of intent (LOIs) of three Australian firms to invest in the Philippines as they eye to maximize the country's growing economy.

Investment includes setting up of an assembly plant for GPS tracking devices, development of a US$10 million biomass power plant, and the US$30 Cebu hotel project.

During the said meeting, David Singleton, CEO of Australian ship maker Austal shared the company’s shipyard operations in Cebu and its plan to expand its operations in the Philippines.

Austal makes fast, lightweight aluminum boats for civilian and military use. They are the sole foreign company supplying aluminum-hulled ships to the United States Navy.

The company makes ships in the Philippines for export to customers in Germany, Australia and many other overseas clients who require high quality shipbuilding.

In a statement, DTI's Lopez said increasing the trade base between Australia and the Philippines should be based on complementarity of industries and sectors where growth will be highly recorded. These industries include agri-based commodities, ship-building, construction (Build, Build, Build), and IT and business process management services (IT-BPM).

The Philippines’ economic breakout is supported by growth in GDP, manufacturing, and consumer confidence, among others. It is also backed by the enhancement of domestic policies, with new regulations adopted to ensure competitiveness of businesses and industries.

Lopez also cited the new tax law TRAIN which allows individuals to have bigger take-home pay. With its implementation, it is expected to build a wider consumer base with higher buying capacity leading to greater opportunities for businesses.

The trade chief reiterated the Philippines is open for business.

The bilateral ties between Australia and the Philippines where foreign and economic relations have grown through 70 years of friendship, with a comprehensive partnership agreement signed in 2015.