Personal remittances from Overseas Filipinos (OFs) rose by 2.4 percent to $2.86 billion in February from $2.79 billion recorded in the same month last year.

The increase in personal remittances in February was due to higher remittances sent by land-based workers with work contracts of one year or more and sea- and land-based workers with work contracts of less than one year.

The expansion in February remittances increased the cumulative personal remittances to $5.93 billion in the first two months of 2023, which is 3 percent higher than the $5.76 billion in the comparable period in 2022.

Of the personal remittances from OFs, cash remittances coursed through banks rose by 2.4 percent to $2.57 billion in February from $2.51 billion in the comparable month a year ago. The expansion in cash remittances in February 2023 was due to the growth in receipts from land- and sea-based workers.

On a year-to-date basis, cash remittances coursed through banks in January-February amounted to $5.33 billion, up by 3 percent from $5.18 billion recorded in the same period a year-ago.

The growth in cash remittances from the United States (US), Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Qatar contributed mainly to the increase in remittances in January – February.

Meanwhile, in terms of country sources, the US posted the highest share of overall remittances during the period, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and Japan. BSP