By Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson, Reporter
CASH REMITTANCES from abroad Filipino employees (OFW) rose by an annual 3.2% in August, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) stated.
Knowledge from the central financial institution confirmed that money remittances grew by 3.2% to $2.89 billion from $2.8 billion a yr in the past.
“The expansion in money remittances in August 2024 was because of the development in receipts from land- and sea-based employees,” the BSP stated in a press release.
Remittances from land-based employees elevated by 3.9% yr on yr to $2.28 billion, whereas cash despatched by sea-based employees inched up by 0.7% to $603.216 million.
Month on month, money remittances slipped from $3.08 billion posted in July.
Private remittances, which embody inflows in variety, elevated by 3.3% to $3.2 billion in August from $3.1 billion a yr earlier.
“The growth in private remittances in August 2024 was resulting from larger remittances from land-based employees with work contracts of 1 yr or extra and sea- and land-based employees with work contracts of lower than one yr,” the central financial institution stated.
Remittances from employees with contracts of 1 yr or extra went up by 3.7% to $2.47 billion, whereas cash despatched house by employees with contracts of lower than a yr edged larger by 1.4% to $670 million.
EIGHT-MONTH PERIOD
Within the January-August interval, money remittances expanded by 2.9% to $22.22 billion from $21.58 billion a yr earlier.
“The expansion in money remittances from the USA, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Singapore contributed primarily to the rise in remittances in January-August 2024,” the BSP stated.
The USA accounted for almost half or 41.3% of total remittances within the first eight months. It was adopted by Singapore (7%), Saudi Arabia (6.1%), the UK (4.9%) and Japan (4.8%).
Different sources of remittances had been the United Arab Emirates (4.2%), Canada (3.5%), Qatar (2.9%), Taiwan (2.7%) and South Korea (2.6%).
In the meantime, private remittances elevated by 3% to $24.74 billion as of end-August from $24.01 billion a yr in the past.
Rizal Business Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort stated the regular development in remittances is a “good sign” for the financial system.
“Philippine remittances from abroad employees have constantly been the fourth largest on the planet after India, Mexico and China, amounting to greater than $40 billion per yr — an indication of resilience — and has all the time been a shiny spot for the Philippine financial system for a few years,” he stated in a Viber message.
Mr. Ricafort famous that the stronger peso in August additionally contributed to the decrease remittances on a month-on-month foundation.
“For the month of August, the US dollar-peso change price declined, largely at P56-57 ranges, versus the P58 ranges in July 2024 that considerably diminished the peso equal of OFW remittances and successfully partly elevated the year-on-year development in OFW remittances in current months.”
The peso strengthened to P56.111 a greenback on Aug. 30 from its shut of P58.365 on July 31.
Mr. Ricafort stated he expects continued single-digit development in remittances within the coming months amid the “normalization of spending by households for each necessities and nonessentials.”
The upcoming vacation season can also be seen to drive remittance development.
“Remittances are anticipated to extend in the course of the vacation season after elevated deployment of employees contributed [to the August growth],” John Paolo R. Rivera, a senior analysis fellow on the Philippine Institute for Improvement Research, stated.
The central financial institution expects money remittances to develop by 3% this yr.
