Central bank sees OFW remittances rising 10% in 2007

this story was taken from www.inq7money.net URL: http://money.inq7.net/topstories/view_topstories.php?yyyy=2006&mon=04&dd=25&file=2 Central bank sees OFW remittances rising 10% in 2007 Posted: 1:52 AM Apr. 25, 2006 Inquirer MONEY remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are expected to grow by another 10 percent and reach a new high of $13 billion next year, as more workers continue to be deployed abroad, projections of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the central bank) show. For this year, OFW remittances will likely hit $11.8 billion, up 10 percent from last year's record high of $10.7 billion, according to the projections. "We already have a huge base, and while the global economy is seen to post growth, the growth would be modest," BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo told reporters. The growth in OFW remittances is attributed to both the increase in Filipinos deployed abroad and better job opportunities available overseas. The increase in dollar inflows from OFWs contributes significantly to the gross international reserves (GIR), which reached an all-time high of $20.84 billion in March, and boosted the peso this year to about 51 to the dollar. The peso's bullish movement has prompted authorities to revise their exchange rate assumption to P51-P53 to the dollar. With INQ7.net