MONEY sent home by overseas Filipinos continued its upward trajectory in June this year, hitting its highest level in nearly a year, data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.
Personal remittances — the sum of fund transfers in cash or in kind — amounted to $3.21 billion in June 2024, up 2.5% from $3.13 billion in June 2023.
This was the highest for personal remittances in 11 months since the $3.321 billion recorded in July 2023.
The $3.21-billion personal remittances in June brought the year-to-date amount to $18.10 billion, up 2.9% from $17.59 billion seen in the same period last year.
“The increase in personal remittances in June 2024 was due to higher remittances sent by land-based workers with work contracts of one year or more and sea- and land-based workers with work contracts of less than one year,” the BSP said.
Of the personal remittances, the central bank said cash remittances — fund transfers which coursed through formal channels such as banks — stood at $2.88 billion, up 2.5% from $2.81 billion year-on-year.
“The expansion in cash remittances in June 2024 was due to the growth in receipts from land- and sea-based workers,” the BSP said.
The January to June 2024 cash remittances, likewise, grew by 2.9% to $16.25 billion from $15.79 billion in the first half of 2023.
Sought from comment, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the growth in remittances “came after some seasonal increase in remittances to finance some holiday-related spending during the school vacation season… and some tuition and other school opening-related expenses at the early stage that could last until early August 2024, as these are expenditures that are compulsory in nature.”
“The continued and consistent growth in OFW remittances could be attributed to higher prices/inflation locally that required the sending of more OFW remittances back to the country,“ Ricafort added.
In terms of country sources, the United States accounted for the highest share in cash remittances from January to June at 40.99%; followed by Singapore and Saudi Arabia, accounting for 6.9% and 6%, respectively. (GMA Integrated News)
