Remittances up 3.1% end-Oct

by Lee C. Chipongian

Overseas Filipinos sent home $26.74 billion of cash remittances in the first 10 months of the year, up by 3.1 percent from same period last year of $25.93 billion, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Thursday, Dec. 15.

Cash remittances are funds transferred via the formal banking system and it is data easily captured by the BSP. The other remittances data is personal remittances which the central bank defines as the sum of the net compensation of overseas Filipinos, as well as personal transfers and capital transfers between households. 

For the month of October, cash remittances totalled $2.91 billion, which was 3.5 percent higher than same period last year of $2.81 billion.

“The expansion in cash remittances in October 2022 was due to the growth in receipts from land-based and sea-based workers,” said the BSP.

Land-based workers’ remittances rose by 3.6 percent year-on-year to $2.33 billion compared to $2.25 billion same time in 2022. Sea-based workers’ fund transfers amounted to $580 million from $560 million or up by 3.6 percent. 

Bulk of remittances came from the US with 41.7 percent of the total. Singapore accounted for seven percent, Saudi Arabia with 5.9 percent and Japan with five percent of the total.

The US will naturally be reported as a big source of remittances because of the common practice of remittance centers using correspondent banks located in the US. “Remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source and are lodged under the country where the main offices are located, which, in many cases, is in the US,” said the BSP.

As of end-October, the BSP said personal remittances increased by 3.1 percent to $29.72 billion from $28.82 billion last year.

For the month of October alone, personal remittances went up by 3.5 percent to $3.23 billion from $3.12 billion same month in 2021.

Land-based workers with work contracts of one year or more remitted $2.53 billion, up by 3.5 percent from $2.44 billion last year. Sea- and land-based workers with work contracts of less than one year, meantime, transferred $640 million which was higher by 3.6 percent from $620 million last year.

By end-2022, the BSP expects cash remittances to grow by four percent year-on-year, unchanged from previous years’ projections, including pre-pandemic. 

In 2021, cash remittances went up by 5.1 percent year-on-year to a record high of $31.42 billion.

Remittances sustain growth as expats help ease inflation's sting

Ramon Royandoyan - Philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines — Money sent home by Filipinos overseas inched up in September as they rushed to support their families weathering the impact of expensive consumer prices.

Remittances coursed through banks inched up 3.8% year-on-year to $2.84 billion in September, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Tuesday. This, however, was slower than 4.3% recorded in August. 

Year-to-date, cash remittances amounted to $23.83 billion. 

Remittances are considered the lifeblood of the consumption-dependent Philippine economy. Money sent home by overseas Filipinos augment their families’ income here. 

These remittances are also crucial sources of dollars for the country. Remittances amounted to $31.42 billion last year, expanding 5.1% compared to the 2020 haul. The collections slightly missed the central bank’s forecast of 6% growth, but the BSP hopes remittances would rise this year.

That said, the surging dollar trend has left the peso sinking to new lows, which convinced many this will benefit families of overseas Filipinos. But that has not been the case as a strong dollar trend is only adding fuel to painfully high inflation that’s squeezing household budgets.

Domini Velasquez, chief economist at China Banking Corp, attributed the growth in September remittances to three economic events.

“The increase in pace in the growth in cash remittances were likely driven by 3 factors: better economic outlook in some of the host countries such as the US, ASEAN, and the Middle East; high domestic inflation may compel overseas Filipinos to help out more in terms of sending money from abroad; and OFs may want to take advantage of a weak peso,” she said in a Viber message.

BSP data broken down showed 41.7% of cash remittances in the first nine months came from the United States, while the rest came from Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Qatar, Taiwan, and South Korea.

Remittance from land-based workers grew 4.1% year-on-year to $2.25 billion in September. Sea-based workers sent $590 million, inching up 2.4% on a yearly basis. 

Velasquez cited that opportunities in remittance-rich countries such as the US and other parts of Asia, and the Middle East will offset the decline recorded in money sent by Filipinos based in Europe.

“The move towards full face-to-face classes in November will also bring in more remittances towards end of 2022,” Velasquez said, as expats send more money to their families to pay for tuition fees.

“Lastly, we might see more holiday remittances as Filipinos will likely celebrate with looser restrictions this year compared to last (e.g. physical company/school Christmas parties),” she added.

OFW remittances up in May – BSP

By Mayvelin U. Caraballo, Manila Times

July 16, 2022

THE amount of money sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) increased to its highest level in two months in May, according to data released on Friday by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

Personal remittances, or cash or kind transfers between families, reached $2.70 billion in the fifth month of 2022, up 1.27 percent from $2.67 billion in April and 1.99 percent from $2.65 billion in May 2021. Since the $2.88 billion sent in March of this year, this was the most OFs ever sent.

The expansion over a year ago in May was related to remittances from land-based employees with contracts lasting one year or more, as well as from sea- and land-based employees with short-term contracts.

The total amount of remittances for the first five months of the year was $14.02 billion, a pickup of 2.5 percent from $13.68 billion from January to May 2021, according to the latest numbers.

Cash remittances, meanwhile, totaled $2.42 billion in May, accelerating 1.25 percent from the month before and 1.80 percent from $2.38 billion a year earlier.

The central bank said the year-on-year expansion in April "attributed to remittances from land-based workers on one year or longer contracts, and from sea- and land-based workers on short-term contracts."

From January to May 2022, cash remittances saw an uptick of 2.5 percent to $12.59 billion from $12.28 billion in the previous year.

The growth in cash remittances from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Qatar and Singapore, the BSP pointed out, contributed significantly to the growth in remittances in the first five months of 2022.

The Bangko Sentral kept its outlook of a 4-percent rise in cash remittances this year, noting the sector's long-term growth trend, expanding deployment as a result of employers' renewed interest in hiring OFWs and rising usage of digital financial services among OFs and their dependents.

OFW remittances fall to 11-month low

By Mayvelin U. Caraballo, Manila Times

THE amount of money sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) fell to its lowest level in 11 months in April, according to data released on Wednesday by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

Personal remittances, or cash or kind transfers between families, totaled $2.67 billion in the fourth month of 2022, down 7.51 percent from $2.88 billion in March of this year, but up 3.76 percent from $2.57 billion in April 2021. It's the smallest amount sent since $2.65 billion was sent in May last year.

The year-on-year gain in April was attributed to a 4.7-percent increase in remittances from land-based workers on one year or longer contracts, which inched up to $2.02 billion from $2.93 billion a year ago, the central bank noted. Meanwhile, remittances from sea- and land-based workers on short-term contracts saw an uptick of 1.4 percent to $581 million in April 2022, up from $609 million a year earlier.

Total remittances for the first four months of the year totaled $11.31 billion, picking up 2.6 percent from $11.02 billion in January to April 2021, according to the latest numbers. In the meantime, cash remittances were $2.39 billion in April, plunging 7.67 percent from the previous month, but accelerating 3.90 percent from $2.30 billion a year ago.

The BSP said revenues from land-based and sea-based workers soared by 4.7 percent to $1.86 billion from $1.77 billion and 1.4 percent to $533 million from $526 million, respectively, fueling the annual increase in cash remittances in April.

Cash remittances surged by 2.7 percent from January to April 2022 to $10.16 billion, rising from $9.89 billion a year earlier. "The growth in cash remittances from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Taiwan and Singapore contributed largely to the increase in remittances in January-April of 2022," the Bangko Sentral reported.

In the four months ending April this year, the United States had the greatest share of overall remittances, accounting for 41.2 percent. Next were Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Qatar, South Korea and Taiwan. Remittances from these 10 countries accounted for 79.2 percent of all cash remittances for the four-month period.

The BSP forecasts a 4-percent increase in cash remittances this year, citing "projected improvements in global growth prospects and further opening of economies along with the continued mass use of vaccines to prevent the spread of Covid-19 are also expected to continue to lend support to the growth prospects for OFW remittances."