Remittances down to $2.977B in August

October 18 ------ Remittances from overseas Filipinos posted a decline in August after the seven-month high seen in July, data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed. Cash remittances, or money transfers coursed through banks or formal channels, were recorded at $2.977 billion in August, down from $3.179 billion in July, but higher than the $2.885 billion recorded the same month last year.

Land-based workers accounted for $2.35 billion which reflected a 3.0% year-on-year growth, while sea-based workers contributed $626 million, up by 3.8%. Year-to-date cash remittances stood at $22.909 billion, 3.1% higher than the $22.219 billion recorded in the comparable period of 2024. The United States was the biggest source of inflows in the eight-month period with 40.4%, followed by Singapore with 7.1%, Saudi Arabia with 6.3%, Japan with 4.9%, and the United Kingdom with 4.8%. They were followed by the United Arab Emirates with 4.5%, Canada with 3.4%, Qatar with 2.9%, Taiwan with 2.8%, and South Korea with 2.6%. Other countries made up the remaining 20.3%.

The BSP noted, however, that remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source and these are lodged under the country where the main offices are located, which is in the United States in many cases. Personal remittances—the sum of transfers sent in cash or in-kind via informal channels—came in at $3.307 billion, up by 3.2% from $3.204 billion last year. Year-to-date personal remittances grew by 3.1% to $25.513 billion from $24.736 billion.

Source: gmanetwork.com