RP nixes business risk assessment

The government yesterday rejected as "outdated" a regional survey that placed the country near the bottom in terms of economic risk for investors in Asia.

Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC), in its latest survey of expatriate business executives released on Tuesday, rated Singapore as Asia’s least risky economy and Indonesia the worst of 14 countries surveyed.

The Philippines occupied 12th place, ahead only of India and Indonesia.

Economic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri said in a statement that PERC "should take a second look at their rating for the Philippines... it seems to be based on old perceptions."

"Their perceived risks from domestic politics and institutions may be a form of hangover from the political crisis in 2005. But that’s dead and buried."

Neri said that in 2006, the Philippines posted 14 percent export growth, nearly double the official target, foreign investments rose 51 percent, and the stock market was near 10-year highs and salary remittances by a large Filipino overseas work force was at an all-time high.

Neri said Lehman Brothers has forecast Philippine gross domestic product growth of 5.8 percent this year.

The official said terrorism was "confined to the three isolated island provinces" in the extreme south due to a string of recent military victories, while the government has embarked on an ambitious infrastructure program to address a key issue raised by business leaders.