Secretary of Finance
September 12, 2025
Fellow workers in government, our partner banks, friends in Japan, ladies and gentlemen: good afternoon.
Thank you for investing your time in this briefing. If there’s one thing we Filipinos know about you, it’s this: the Japanese never waste time. And neither do Filipinos, especially when it comes to friendship and business.
That is why today, we are here to get straight to the point: to explore how the Philippines and Japan can work bigger, faster, and stronger together.
Japan has always been more than a partner to us. You are our best friend in the region. Especially in trade, tourism, investments, defense, and in building our infrastructure projects.
In fact, just yesterday, the Philippine economic and infrastructure managers met with our Japanese counterparts, led by Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Japan Dr. Mori Masafumi, to review the progress of our infrastructure cooperation.
These high-level meetings are held regularly, twice a year, alternating between Japan and the Philippines, to ensure that every project remains on track and that Filipinos reap the benefits at the soonest possible time.
Because of Japan, the Philippines will soon have its first-ever underground Metro Manila Subway.
It is also through Japan’s Tsuneishi Group that we have the world’s first-ever methanol-powered bulk carrier , making the Philippines among the world’s greatest shipbuilding nations .
And Japan remains the largest investor in our economic zones, giving more than 320,000 jobs to Filipinos.
So, let me take this opportunity to thank you on behalf of the Filipino people.
And there is a reason why we chose to be in Osaka today. For Osaka is your second-largest economic hub, with an economy nearly as big as Singapore’s entire GDP.
Osaka’s DNA is entrepreneurship. And we, too, are a nation of builders and innovators hungry for growth. This is why we believe that the hardy enterprises of this city can find a natural home in the Philippines.
And let me tell you the reasons why.
Amid all the uncertainties — two hot wars, a cold war, and tariff wars — the Philippines offers Japanese investors a strategic and stable safe haven in Southeast Asia.
Despite global headwinds, our economy has grown at an average of 5.9 percent since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office in 2022. This is almost double the global growth rate.
Our people’s lives are improving. The poverty rate is declining. Inflation has gone down. Revenues are strong. And our labor market is more vibrant than ever.
All of these provide large headroom for your enterprises to thrive in our domestic market.
And we are already following the footsteps of Japan’s booming consumer market.
By 2030, the Philippines is expected to be the 13th largest consumer market in the world.
The IMF projects that by the same year, we will rank among the world’s top 26 economies in terms of nominal GDP.
By 2051, projections show that we will become the 18th-largest economy.
And fast forward to 2075, we are poised to become the 14th biggest economy in the world—outpacing France. We will only be one step closer to Japan.
To reap the harvest of prosperity, we have been planting the right seeds: Sound policies. Smart investments. And right partners like Japan.
We know Osaka is a global leader in key manufacturing industries such as pharmaceuticals, energy, technology, electronics, and IT-BPM. These are exactly the same sectors we are aggressively developing in the Philippines.
So to attract partners like you, we have put in place some of the most modern and investor-friendly reforms in Asia focused on certainty, speed, and scale.
Our goal is simple: to dramatically increase the footprint of the 3,018 Japanese-owned projects already thriving in the Philippines, most of which are in the manufacturing sector.
For instance, we now allow full foreign ownership of our high-impact public services such as telecommunications, toll roads, airports, shipping, and renewable energy.
With our landmark CREATE MORE Act, we offer both fiscal and non-fiscal incentives tailored to your investment priorities.
You can enjoy 4 to 7 years of income tax holiday, depending on the type and location of the project.
The Special Corporate Income Tax and Enhanced Deductions Regime are now extended to a period of up to 10 or 20 years.
Labor-intensive projects are allowed to apply for an extension of another 5 or 10 years.
An additional 100 percent deduction on power expenses and an additional 50 percent reinvestment allowance are available to those in the manufacturing and tourism sectors.
We have resolved a long-standing concern for Japanese exporters. Export-oriented enterprises are now exempt from value-added tax.
And for projects with investment capital of at least 127.8 billion Japanese yen or direct local employment generation of at least 10,000 workers, incentives could be tailored or bespoke for up to 40 years. That’s long-term certainty that you can bank on.
Health-related activities, green projects, and technology-driven investments — your competitive edge — now enjoy a higher tier of incentives under this law.
Simply put, we carefully crafted CREATE MORE to reward your innovation, make more money for you, and generate more high-quality jobs for our people.
And there’s no better place to start relocating and expanding than in our Luzon Economic Corridor, which is the future logistics and manufacturing super hub of the Philippines and eventually in Asia.
To ease your entry in this corridor, we have set up Green Lanes, which streamline processes for high-value investments.
In just two years since this has been implemented, we have already approved 212 projects worth 15.34 trillion Japanese yen.
This includes the 93.3 billion Japanese yen LBS Digital Infrastructure Common Tower Project which is backed by Japanese company Sojitz Corporation.
Meanwhile, our Private Partnership Code makes investing in our 207 infrastructure flagship projects easier and faster than ever before.
These big-ticket projects, worth around 27 trillion Japanese yen, range from physical and digital connectivity to renewable energy and transport systems.
49 of them are open for PPPs, and you can see the full list on the screen.
So I invite you to submit unsolicited proposals, respond to solicited ones, or explore more joint ventures with our local companies for these projects.
We are looking for more top-tier Japanese companies like Shimizu Corporation , Mitsubishi Corporation , and Sumitomo Group that helped us develop our railway and road projects.
We are likewise opening to private sector participation the development of the country’s first-ever Philippine Spaceport.
This project aims to position the Philippines as a strategic launch hub in the rapidly expanding global space economy.
And this aligns perfectly with our space technology cooperation with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to enhance disaster monitoring, agriculture management, and satellite connectivity.
To top it all off, we are making it easier for your capital to flow and grow. We recently reduced our stock transaction tax from 0.6 percent to just 0.1 percent, making our capital markets leaner, more liquid, and more attractive for Japanese investors.
And it makes perfect sense to deepen our financial integration. Two of Japan’s leading credit rating agencies — JCR and R&I — have already given the Philippines a high investment-grade of A-minus.
This is your vote of confidence in our fiscal management, our investment climate, and our growth trajectory — and we intend to keep earning it.
Japanese investors have been vital partners in our fundraising activities. And we will continue tapping the Samurai market, giving you a bigger role and bigger returns in the Philippines’ growth story.
Meanwhile, for investors keeping an eye on our vast mineral wealth, we have already rationalized our mining fiscal regime.
This will provide fiscal stability and certainty to current and potential mining investments.
Beyond these, the Philippines is the perfect digital partner of Japan in Asia.
We are the fastest-growing digital economy in ASEAN. We are also the world’s second-largest services delivery location.
These make the Philippines the natural hub for Japanese companies in IT, BPO, fintech, blockchain, AI, and data centers.
And we have the right talent to make all of your success happen.
The Philippines ranks among the global leaders in AI adoption.
And the Filipino talent is very abundant— whether it’s tech, science, finance, or service excellence.
This should come as no surprise, as Filipinos are one of the most sought-after workers in the world.
We have a young, tech-savvy, and English-speaking population with a median age of just 25 years old.
Given Japan’s aging population, averaging 49 years old, this presents a strategic opportunity for our two countries to form a strong demographic partnership.
In our people, you will not only find workers. You will meet innovators, partners, and dreamers.
Next year, as we celebrate 70 years of bilateral relations, we will not just look back on what we have achieved, we will look forward to what more we can build.
Seven decades of trust is a powerful foundation. But the true measure of friendship is not how long it has lasted, but how far it can still go.
So I stand before you not only as a finance secretary, but as a salesman of a simple truth: Osaka’s spirit of innovation, matched with Filipino talent and drive, can forge a partnership that will shape the economic future of Asia.
For when Japanese capital meets Filipino talent and grit, there are no limits to what we can create.
So to our future partners from Osaka, I say this: your ideas deserve realization, your industries deserve growth, and your companies have a home in the Philippines.
And you will be welcomed by a government that is not only transparent and guided by good governance, but is decisive and unafraid to act and address corruption. We will continuously earn your trust and confidence by protecting your investments and delivering on our promises.
You are in the right place, at the right time, with the right partners—and the right opportunities—to win big.
So, in line with your theme in this year’s Expo, let us work together in designing the future society for both the Japanese and Filipinos.
With that, domo arigato gozaimasu.
And see you soon very soon in the Philippines. Mabuhay ang Bagong Pilipinas!
