Storm damages seen to boost remittances further

MANILA - Money sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFW) grew 8.6% in September, with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) expecting further growth in the coming months due to the impact of recent typhoons.

Remittances increased to $1.446 billion in September from last year's $1.332 billion. The amount is also higher than the $1.369 billion recorded in the previous month, when remittances posted a meager 2.8% growth.

The September figure brought the country's total remittance inflows to $12.789 billion for the first 9 months of the year, a 4.2% growth from last year's $12.273 billion. This is already higher than the BSP's full-year growth forecast of 4%.

During the 9-month period, the country's major source of remittances were the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Italy, and Germany.

The BSP attributed the steady rise in remittances to high global demand for professional and skilled Filipino workers, stronger ties with host countries, and to increased access of OFWs and their families to formal money transfer channels.

But beyond all of these, the BSP said remittances are likely to grow further in the coming months as OFWs send more monetary assistance to families whose properties were devastated by typhoons "Ondoy" and "Pepeng" (international code names Ketsana and Parma, respectively).

The 2 storms hit the Philippines in late September and early October.

"In the near term, remittances could rise even further as the series of strong typhoons that hit the country in September and October could have encouraged larger amounts of transfers from relatives based overseas with a view to assisting their families in their rebuilding efforts," the BSP said in a statement released Monday.

The World Bank has also projected a 4% growth in remittances this year, but stressed that the figure has upside potential due to the impact of recent typhoons. Citing a study, the multilateral lender said about 60% of household income lost through natural calamities such as storms is replaced by remittances.

"As households affected by typhoon Ondoy constitute a large share of remittances flowing into the country, a strong increase in remittance inflows in and around the month of October is expected," the World Bank said early this month.

Historically, OFWs send more money to their families back home when they need it the most. In June, for instance, remittances reached a record $1.498 billion amid fears that rich countries would slash jobs and prioritize their own citizens in employment generation efforts.

June is one of the traditionally strong months for remittances as OFWs send more money home to their families to pay for tuition fees and other supplies needed for school. Inflows are also usually more robust in December as migrant workers send money to their loved ones to celebrate the Christmas season. Text and graphs by Karen Flores, abs-cbnNEWS.com