Aboitiz Estates still fielding queries from potential investors despite new tariffs

POTENTIAL foreign investors continue to make inquiries about possibly locating operations in the Philippines even in the face of US tariff uncertainty, Aboitiz InfraCapital Economic Estates (AIC Economic Estates) said.

- By Justine Irish D. Tabile

“Because of the value that we've created in our estates, for us from where we're sitting, it’s business as usual,” Monica Lorenzana Trajano, vice-president and head of commercial strategy at AIC Economic Estates, said at a media roundtable on Tuesday.

She said there has been no slowdown in the inquiries, describing the flow of communications with potential investors as “constant.”

“It’s a constant flow because we are also constantly expanding, so when the international locators see us, they see their ability to scale,” she said.

“Our ecosystem is world-class, so they are able to compare us with other countries in terms of support for their growth or expansion. So, tariffwise, I would not say there has been a slowdown,” she added.

She said the China plus one strategy, under which investors remain in China but seek an alternative production center, is driving locator behavior because of the need to derisk supply chains,

“What we are also seeing is that a lot of foreign companies are understanding the strength of our domestic market,” she said.