March remittances drop 9.8% in March amid repatriation
MANILA, Philippines — Money sent home by overseas Filipino workers fell by 9.8 percent year-on-year in March amid the influx of Filipinos returning from the Middle East, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Tuesday.
Total cash remittances coursed through banks dropped to the lowest level in 15 years in March to hit $2.4 billion, lower than the $2.6 billion recorded in the comparable period last year but still higher than February’s $2.3 billion.
The latest figure brought the January-March tally to $7.0 billion, growing 0.8 percent from the level posted in the first quarter of 2017.
The countries that registered the biggest declines in cash remittances were Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and the United States.
In a statement, the BSP attributed the negative growth in remittances last March to fewer banking days due to the celebration of the Holy Week during the month.
The continued repatriation of Filipino migrant workers from the Middle East could have also affected the inflows of cash remittances, the BSP said, noting the 1,124 expats who went home from Kuwait as of February 8.
To recall, President Rodrigo Duterte repeatedly lashed out at Kuwait and barred Filipinos from seeking work in the oil-rich Arab nation after a Filipina worker was found dead inside a freezer in an abandoned home.
As diplomatic tensions rose, Duterte said the ban on sending workers to Kuwait remains. He urged Filipino expats to come home.
'Slide likely temporary'
Sought for comment, Union Bank of the Philippines chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion said the slide in remittances is “more likely temporary,” adding that he expects the figure to improve in the second quarter.
“The Kuwait debacle's impact may be minimal at this point because its part in the remittances pie is only about 2.7 percent in 2017,” Asuncion explained. “Thus, I see the 4.0 percent growth target for this year intact.”
Ahead of the central bank’s data release, Malacañang announced the lifting of the deployment ban for skilled and semi-skilled workers to Kuwait effective Tuesday, which came on the heels of the signing of a labor deal that seeks to provide more protection and better working conditions for OFWs in the Gulf state.
The World Bank early this month reported that the Philippines is the third largest remittance receiving nation in the world in 2017, helping drive the increase in domestic consumption which, in turn, fuels overall economic growth.
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