Remittances hit $9.7b in 11 months

Remittances hit $9.7b in 11 months
By Eileen A. Mencias
Manila Standard Today
January 13, 2006
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=business04_jan14_2006

Remittances from Filipinos working abroad totaled $9.73 billion in the first 11 months of 2005, up 26.6 percent from $7.7 billion on-year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported yesterday.

BSP Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr. attributed the rise in remittances to the continued deployment of Filipino workers overseas as well as efforts to encourage the use of formal channels such as banks in sending money home.

Citing preliminary data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the BSP said deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) grew 3.9 percent to 900,639 during the 11-month period from 867,125 a year ago.

It said demand for Filipino seafarers and professionals remain high.

Land-based workers accounted for about three-fourths of the total while sea-based workers contributed a fourth. Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Japan, the United Arab Emirates and Taiwan were the main destination of Filipino workers.

Other sources of remittances included United States, Italy and Singapore.

Banks have been innovating their system on money transfers and establishing more remittance centers abroad to make their services more accessible to over five million OFWs. Other banks have forged tie-ups with foreign financial institutions to service the needs of Filipino workers.

The heavy remittance flows helped the peso to recover back to the 52:$1 level from the 55 in the middle of last year.

The BSP expects remittances coursed through banks to total $11.7 billion this year, up 10 percent growth from an estimated $10.7 billion last year.