Remittances rise 3% to $2.95 billion in February

Overseas Filipinos’ (OFs) personal remittances in February 2024 grew 3 percent year-on-year to $2.95 billion from $2.86 billion, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said in a report by Philippine News Agency.

“The increase in personal remittances in February 2024 was due to remittances from 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.

The central bank added that the bulk of cash remittances in February 2024 was coursed through banks amounting to USD2.65 billion.

The BSP said the additional OF remittance in February increased the year-to-date personal remittance level by 2.8 percent to USD6.1 billion in January to February 2024 from USD5.93 billion during the same period last year.

“The growth in cash remittances from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates contributed mainly to the increase in remittances in January-February 2024,” it added.

In terms of country source, remittances from the US had the largest share at 41.4 percent, Singapore at 7 percent, Saudi Arabia at 5.6 percent, Japan at 5.2 percent, and United Kingdom at 4.8 percent.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the continued growth in OF remittances could be attributed to higher inflation in the country that would require sending more remittances back to the country.

However, Ricafort said that the higher cash remittances sent by overseas Filipino workers were offset by peso depreciation.