Philippines: Cash remittances fall in June
In June, cash remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) reached USD 2.4 billion, a 4.5% decline from the same month of the previous year. The reading came in below May’s 6.9% year-on-year expansion.
The overall trend also deteriorated slightly, as cash remittances in the 12 months up to June totaled USD 28.4 billion, coming in marginally below the USD 28.5 billion total recorded in the 12 months up to May. June’s 12-month total was 3.3% higher than in the corresponding period of last year, but down from the 4.2% annual increase observed in the 12 months up to May.
Remittances, which accounted for approximately 10.0% of GDP in 2017, are an important source of income for many Filipino families and thus constitute one of the main drivers of private consumption. The fall observed in June was mainly due to lower remittances from countries including the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.