MANILA, Philippines - Money sent home by Filipino seamen in the first quarter grew by 11% from a year ago to $888.95 million, but a prolonged economic crisis in Europe could hurt future remittances, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said on Sunday.
From January to March, remittances by seamen outpaced the nearly 6% growth in money sent by land-based overseas workers to their families in the Philippines.
"We remain bullish overall about the potential growth in remittances from Filipino sailors in the months ahead," said former Senator Ernesto Herrera, who is now secretary-general of the TUCP.
He said that remittances from seamen based in Greece, the center of Europe's brewing financial crisis, still rose by 18% in the first quarter to $34.7 million compared to $29.3 million a year ago.
TUCP however, noted that remittances from Filipino sailors based in Norway, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Denmark, Ireland and Sweden declined by nearly 21% in the first quarter.
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