The Clark Freeport is not only an economic haven, but also a destination that brings significant economic contributions in Central Luzon, according to the regional office of the Department Trade and Industry.
The Freeport generated export volume amounting to $6.565 billion or 67 percent of the $9.839 billion export generated in Central Luzon in 2014, said Aaron Galang, SME Development Division of DTI-3 in his report.
The same report also said that $6.38 billion or 64 percent of the total $9.979 billion export in the region during the 2015 period originated from Clark Freeport.
In the national level, the Freeport contributed 11 percent of the total $61.810 billion export that the entire country generated in 2014; and same 11 percent of the total Philippine export volume of $57.299 billion in 2015, the DTI reports said.
Clark Development Corporation President/CEO Noel F. Manankil said he is hoping that with the continued economic trend inside the Freeport, the figures for 2016 will be slightly higher in terms of export volume.
The Corporate Planning Department of CDC (CDC-CPD) has reported the economic contribution generated in Clark in one of the management committee meetings recently.
In the report, CPD also said that Clark was also able to employ 75,538 or 1.8 percent of the total 4.1129 million work force in 2014; and 82,382 workers of the 4.176 million or two percent in 2015 in the region. The Freeport also contributed 0.2 percent of the 38.651 million workers in 2014 and 0.2 percent of the 39.816 million workers in 2015 in the entire country.
The CPD said that figures came from the Labor Force Surveys (of 2014 -2015) of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The PSA also said the Freeport has about 9.87 Approved Foreign Investments (AFI) or 35.1 percent of the total 25.615 AFI in 2014; and rose to 9.70 AFI or 43 percent of the 22.714 AFI in 2015. With the AFI, Clark generated 4.8 percent of the AFI of the total 186.959 in the national figure; and four percent on that total AFI of 240.105 in 2015.
The PSA, according to CPD reports, stated that the Freeport also contributed in the influx of foreign tourists due to the “increased air traffic at the Clark International Airport (CIA).”
Of the total tourist arrivals in country of 20.180 million in 2014, Clark contributed 992,145 foreign tourists or 4.9 percent share; and with the more than 22.172 arrivals foreign visitors in the country in 2015, Clark generated more than 1.02 million or 4.5 percent share.
PSA said that more than 3.1 million foreign arrivals in Central Luzon in 2014 and has increased to more than 3.5 million in 2015.