Fashion
Japanese SMEs are being enticed to invest in the Philippines, where labor cost is competitive and a majority of workers are English-speaking.
Spearheading the campaign are Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) and Resona Bank, a bank for small and medium enterprises in Japan’s Kansai and Osaka areas. To date, 55 Japanese firms have established their facilities in the Philippines following the tie-up agreement they entered into in 2012.
Japanese companies which have established their facilities in Philippines affirmed the advantage of the competitive cost of Philippine labor with the added benefit of Engish-speaking skills that enable easier training and work atmosphere.
In their latest campaign, RCBC’s Japanese Business Relationship Office first senior vice president Yasuhiro Matsumoto recently accompanied Trade Secretary Adrian Cristobal Jr. to a Philippine Investment Opportunities Forum in Osaka, Japan.
Attended by 350 corporate clients, the forum was organized by the Resona Foundation for Asia and Oceania with co-organizers Osaka Prefecture Government, the Osaka Municipal Government, the Kansai Economic Federation, the Osaka Foundation for Trade and Industry, and the Osaka Chamber of Commerce Industry. This was also supported by JETRO, Resona Bank and the Kinki Osaka Bank.
Matsumoto highlighted the success secrets of companies operating in the Philippines. As RCBC’s key senior officer focused on Japanese clients, Matsumoto had seen and supported the entry and growth of Japanese companies, specially in export processing zones.
Matsumoto further cited the growing spending power of the Filipino consumer as shown by the surge in business by a range of consumer-focused companies in food, beverage, and middle-end retail outlets that are supplanting the formerly ubiquitous low-end sari-sari stores in the urban centers. With the second largest population in ASEAN, with a young average age, the Philippine potential for investments is huge, he said.
