OFW remittances drop 5.2% in March

Cash remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) declined by 5.2% to $2.652 billion in March, marking the first contraction since June 2019.

This downturn was attributed to labor cutbacks in the Middle East oil industry and the repatriation of thousands of Filipino workers.

Countries like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait saw declines in remittances due to depressed oil prices affecting worker demand.

Despite the March dip, first-quarter remittances for 2020 still showed a slight growth of 1.5%, reaching $8.218 billion.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has revised its forecast, projecting a 5% decline in cash remittances for the entire year, a reversal from earlier positive growth estimates.

The World Bank's global projection is even more severe, anticipating a 20% drop in worldwide remittances due to the ongoing pandemic.