Personal Remittances Post US$3.10 Billion in August 2023

Personal remittances from Overseas Filipinos (OFs) increased by 2.8 percent to reach US$3.10 billion in August 2023 from US$3.02 billion in the same month of the previous year.

The growth in personal remittances in August 2023 was driven by increased remittances from 1) land-based workers with work contracts of one year or more and 2) sea- and land-based workers with work contracts of less than one year.

Similarly, the total amount of personal remittances from OFs in the first eight months of 2023 reached US$24.01 billion.

This represents a 2.9 percent increase from the US$23.34 billion in the same period in 2022.

Of the personal remittances, cash remittances sent through banks grew by 2.7 percent in August 2023 to US$2.80 billion, up from US$2.72 billion in the same month the previous year. The growth in cash remittances during the month was due primarily to increased receipts from both land- and sea-based workers.

On a year-to-date basis, cash remittances for the first eight months of 2023 amounted to US$21.58 billion, marking a 2.8 percent increase from the US$20.99 billion in the same period a year ago.

The growth in cash remittances from the United States (U.S.), Saudi Arabia, and Singapore contributed mainly to the increase in remittances in the first eight months of 2023. In terms of the countries where these remittances originate, the U.S. had the highest share of overall remittances during the period, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia.^[1]

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^[1] There are some limitations on the remittance data by source. A common practice of remittance centers in various cities abroad is to course remittances through correspondent banks, most of which are located in the U.S. Also, remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source and are lodged under the country where the main offices are located, which, in many cases, is in the U.S. Therefore, the U.S. would appear to be the main source of OF remittances because banks attribute the origin of funds to the most immediate source. The countries are listed in order of their share of cash remittances, i.e., from highest to lowest.