MANILA — Some 55 Italian companies are interested in investing in the country, Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, Inc. (ICCPI) Executive Director Lorens Ziller said Wednesday.
On the sidelines of the European Union-Philippines Business Network (EPBN) forum in Makati City, Ziller told reporters that the interest of Italian firms in the Philippines remains high despite uncertainties generated by the proposed second package of the tax reform program.
Ziller said Italian companies would gravitate towards countries with lower taxes and where incentives are sweeter. “We believe that some amendments can still be made. So, we wait for the final version of this,” the executive said.
“If the country is interesting, of course taxes are very important point, but so is the labor force, so is the local market, and so are the other aspects. If there is best case scenario and worst case scenario, so worst case scenario is they have to adapt to say higher taxes if any. Therefore, we are very optimistic and positive,” added Ziller.
He said the ICCPI and the EPBN have been active in promoting the Philippines as an investment hub for European companies in ASEAN. (PNA)
