Spanish Remittances Fall

BY JAN SMITH
AND LUIS SOLER

Latin American remittances from Spain will decrease by 10 percent by the end of the first quarter of 2009

Remittances are a basic mechanism for the development of recipient countries, but it is vulnerable to economic downturns. In the wake of the economic slowdown, remittances sent by immigrants living in Spain have gradually fallen off in recent months. This is the logical effect associated with higher rates of unemployment in the construction and real estate sectors, and to a lesser extent, in services. Recipient countries are beginning to feel the “aftershocks” of the Spanish economic crisis as they receive less funds from their emigrants abroad. Read more