5 economic deals with Japan set

At least five business deals and memoranda of understanding between the Philippines and Japan will be signed on the sidelines of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s participation in the 50th Commemorative ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation Summit in Tokyo.

Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual revealed this to reporters on Saturday, noting that the business agreements are expected to be signed on Monday.

"(The agreements) are expressions of interest to invest in the Philippines by Japanese companies. Some are MoUs (memoranda of understanding) between Philippines and Japanese companies," he said.

Pascual said the development supports the Marcos administration's effort to lure foreign investments.

Biggest source of capital

"These Japanese investments are most welcome, and they're among the largest investors in the Philippines already among all the nationalities that have operations in the country," he added.

The President and First Lady, Liza Araneta Marcos, along with the Philippine delegation arrived at Tokyo's Haneda International Airport on Friday at around 7 p.m. (Japan time).

Marcos said his visit was at the invitation of Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

"The last ASEAN-related summit for 2023 is an opportunity for the Philippines to affirm its position on current international issues and to advance the interest of the country," Marcos said, adding that it would be "an opportunity for the Philippines to welcome the conferment of Comprehensive Partner Status to Japan."

The Philippines and Japan established relations on 23 July 1956.

The Philippines considers Japan one of its three strategic partners, with 264 bilateral agreements between them, Malacañang said.

The Philippines has worked with Japan on acquiring defense equipment and technology and sourcing funds for infrastructure development and peace in Mindanao.

Japan was the Philippines' second largest trading partner in 2022, recording a total trade of $23.49 billion, up 10.9 percent from the $21.83 billion recorded in 2021.

In the same period, exports and imports were valued at $11.13 billion and $12.35 billion, respectively.

Among the Philippines' priority sectors that the government aims to promote for Japanese investments are manufacturing, IT-BPM, electronic design services, PPP projects, agribusiness and aquaculture, and SMEs, including cluster and supply chain building projects.

At present, Japan is the Philippines' biggest source of Official Development Assistance, with a share of 40.49 percent or $12,923.99 million of the total portfolio, and the second largest source of grant assistance, accounting for 28.93 percent or $577.72 million of the total grants' portfolio.

Currently, there are 331,523 registered Filipinos living in Japan.