President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. expressed belief Tuesday that the country would maintain its strong economic performance to achieve its economic target of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent for 2022.

"Our growth rate looks healthy, our peso has become a little stronger, and our unemployment rate is quite reasonable considering the situation," Marcos said as he assured the public that the Philippines remains an attractive destination for investors.

He invited businesses to invest in education, skills training, digitalization of processes, as well as research and development.

The President explained that strengthening those areas would reinforce the country's domestic industries and lessen its dependence on imported goods.

Mr. Marcos issued the statement amid inflation in November hitting eight percent. He blamed imports as being the "main drivers of inflation."

"The main drivers of that inflation, unfortunately, are still imported. So, again, import substitution is still a good idea not only for foreign exchange reserve but also so that we can keep our inflation rate down," he added.