OFW remittances up by 2.5% in June, says BSP

MANILA, Philippines — The Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas recorded a 2.5% increase in personal remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFW), going from $3.21 billion in June 2024 compared to $3.13 billion in June 2023.   

This led to a cumulative remittance from January to June 2024 of $18.10 billion, an increase of 2.9% from the same time period in 2023. January to June 2023 had a cumulative remittance of $17.59 billion. 

“The increase in personal remittances in June 2024 was due to higher remittances sent by 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,” the BSP wrote in a statement on Thursday. 

From the June 2024 remittances, $2.88 billion were transmitted through banks, which is a 2.5% increase from the $2.81 billion remitted in June 2023. The BSP likewise attributed this hike to the increased receipts from sea and land based workers. 

Meanwhile, cash remittances grew by 2.9% to $16.25 billion from January to June from the $15.79 billion recorded in the same period in 2023, on a  year-to-date basis.

The BSP said the numbers mentioned may not add up to the total, as they have rounded up the values. 

There was a growth in cash remittances from the United States, Saudi Arabia and Singapore. The bulk of OFW remittances came from the US, contributing a total of 40.9%. Singapore-based OFWs contributed 6.9% of remittances while 6% came from Saudi Arabia. 

The BSP recorded the country sources for OFW remittances: 

Other countries contributed 20.4% of the remaining remittances.

Remittances have been a strong a steady contributor to the economy, representing 8.5% of the country's gross domestic product in 2023.