Manila - German construction equipment manufacturer Wacker Neuson has opened a factory just outside the Philippine capital, a government statement said Saturday.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that Wacker Neuson's top of the line factory was inaugurated earlier in the week in an industrial estate in Dasmarinas town in Cavite province, 50 kilometres south of Manila.

The company is a major global manufacturer of light and compact equipment for construction, such as track excavators, compact wheel loaders and dumpers.

George Sick, Wacker Neuson president and chief executive, cited the large pool of highly skilled, English-speaking manpower as a key reason for opening a factory in the Philippines.

The company is expected to export equipment produced at the Philippine plant to the United States and Asia. (dpa)