Chinese Investments in Philippines

It is no secret that China is fast rising to become a competitor to American hegemony and challenging the world order created and sustained largely by the US. The primary tool used by the Chinese here has been that of economics. It is its persistently growing economic performance that enabled it to build itself up at the world stage. Now in the present stage, it has been smartly leveraging its economic standing to spread its influence across the globe. One of the ways it has successfully done so is through its various investments in across the globe. The trillion dollars BRI is but one facet of all of its investments beyond the borders.

Philippines is the latest addition to one of its smart investment strategies. Chinese investments into the Philippine economy have shot up all of a sudden. A major reason for this jump in the investments was the straining of relations between the US and Philippines that have long been allies of each other.

China saw this as an opportunity to advance both its economic and strategic interests and acted timely to warm up to Philippines. The Chinese president made a visit to the island nation and several investments deals were made. 29 cooperation agreements signed on that very visit last year.

Chinese investments in Philippines are spread across a number of sectors and industries in Philippines. The investment into infrastructural developments seems to be a favorite as according to a Chinese proverb building infrastructure is the way to economic progress.

The Gezhouba Group of china which is an engineering and construction firm will be working on a $2 billion, industrial park in Philippine. Chinese loans are funding the building of a railway line which will connect the coastal city of Subic to Clark.

Another huge infrastructural investment that china has undertaken in Philippines is the commitment to fund the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic strategy known as “Build Build Build”. The Philippine President seeks to revamp and redevelop the former US Base Clark into a green and model city. This investment will also serve as a symbol of the new-born friendship between Beijing and Manila.

Besides these, MOUs were signed between Chinese firms Hebei Iron & Steel Group and the local steel manufacturers jointly invest in a steel plant in the southern part of the country.

Moreover, there are Chinese investments in agriculture as well as the manufacturing sector.