PHILIPPINES: ING sees little remittance growth in ’09

Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:43:00 01/02/2009

Foreign exchange sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are likely to slow down significantly to a 3.0-4.0 percent growth this year because of the weakening global economy, according to projections of the Dutch financial giant ING.

Remittances coursed through the banking system have exceeded $1 billion every month since May 2006, and the central bank expects a 13-percent growth this year.

ING economist Jose Mario Cuyegkeng, in a presentation to the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines, said, “Regression analysis reveals that for every one-percentage-point cut in US growth, Philippine OFW remittance growth is cut by 0.9 percentage point.” Read more