May 15, 2009
Filipino remittances up 3%
MANILA - FILIPINO workers sent home a record US$1.5 billion (S$2.2 billion) in March, up 3.1 per cent from a year ago, as demand for overseas labour remained steady despite the global economic crisis, the central bank said Friday.
Nearly 10 per cent of the country's 90 million people work abroad - many as nurses, maids, engineers, construction workers and seamen.
For the first quarter, remittances grew 2.7 per cent to US$4.1 billion.
The World Bank has projected a 4 per cent drop in Filipinos' remittances this year as a result of the global downturn, but according to the central bank, demand for labour is still strong.
Central bank Gov Amando Tetangco said a bank study showed continued demand for Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia - the most popular destination for Filipino labour for the last four decades - as the kingdom gears up for construction of megacities.
'These developments provide continued optimism for stability in remittances, notwithstanding the displacement of some (workers) as a result of the global economic crisis,' Mr Tetangco said.
Last year, overseas Filipinos sent home US$16.4 billion, or 10.4 per cent of the country's gross domestic product, fuelling domestic consumption that is a lynchip of the economy.
The number of workers who left the Philippines in the first two months rose 27.3 per cent from a year ago, the central bank said.
Markets that have not been severely affected by the crisis also have job needs while recently signed labour accords are expected to improve job prospects for Filipinos in Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Qatar, the bank said.
Apart from the Middle East, many Filipinos work in the US and South-east Asia. -- AP
Filipino remittances up 3%
MANILA - FILIPINO workers sent home a record US$1.5 billion (S$2.2 billion) in March, up 3.1 per cent from a year ago, as demand for overseas labour remained steady despite the global economic crisis, the central bank said Friday.
Nearly 10 per cent of the country's 90 million people work abroad - many as nurses, maids, engineers, construction workers and seamen.
For the first quarter, remittances grew 2.7 per cent to US$4.1 billion.
The World Bank has projected a 4 per cent drop in Filipinos' remittances this year as a result of the global downturn, but according to the central bank, demand for labour is still strong.
Central bank Gov Amando Tetangco said a bank study showed continued demand for Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia - the most popular destination for Filipino labour for the last four decades - as the kingdom gears up for construction of megacities.
'These developments provide continued optimism for stability in remittances, notwithstanding the displacement of some (workers) as a result of the global economic crisis,' Mr Tetangco said.
Last year, overseas Filipinos sent home US$16.4 billion, or 10.4 per cent of the country's gross domestic product, fuelling domestic consumption that is a lynchip of the economy.
The number of workers who left the Philippines in the first two months rose 27.3 per cent from a year ago, the central bank said.
Markets that have not been severely affected by the crisis also have job needs while recently signed labour accords are expected to improve job prospects for Filipinos in Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Qatar, the bank said.
Apart from the Middle East, many Filipinos work in the US and South-east Asia. -- AP
