​TRADE Secretary Alfredo Pascual said the country should expect a robust foreign investments outlook this year.

Speaking at an event in Makati City on Thursday, Pascual expressed confidence for a positive foreign investments outlook this year, especially in the areas of renewable energy (RE), electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and assembly; semiconductor, information technology and business process management (IT-BPM); and agribusiness industry.

"While the Philippine economy performed well despite geopolitical challenges in 2023, we are rallying for an even better outlook this year," said Pascual.

He said that the country is keen on promoting RE, which is necessary for the global transition to clean energy technologies and applications.

"We intend to tap this vast potential as we target to increase the share of renewables in our power generation mix from the current 22 percent to 50 percent by 2040," he said.

The Trade chief also said that the country has also seen an increase of investment in EV manufacturing and assembly as the Philippines has an abundant supply of green metals such as nickel for its batteries.

For semiconductors, Pascual seeks to see an increase of semiconductor manufacturing services with assembly, test, packaging and electronics manufacturing services.

He also said that works are underway for the integrated circuit (IC) design.

"To support this goal, plans are underway to establish a Science and Technology Center, which will house an IC design training laboratory, a research and development lab, and a lab-scale wafer fab," he said.

The country also saw significant investment outlook in the IT-BPM as it is regarded as a top-tier destination for IT-BPM services and remains one of the leaders in the industry globally.

In agribusiness, Pascual said that the country has established a strong global presence in exporting agriculture products. He vowed to modernize the sector, especially in establishing cold chains.

"While the country has established a strong global presence on essential export commodities, such as coco-based products, bananas and pineapples, carrageenan and preserved tuna, we remain committed to modernizing these sectors," he said.