PERSONAL remittances from Overseas Filipinos (OFs) grew by 3.8 percent to US$2.77 billion in April 2023 from US$2.67 billion recorded in the same month last year. The increase in personal remittances in April 2023 was due to higher remittances sent by 1) land-based workers with work contracts of one year or more and 2) sea- and land-based workers with work contracts of less than one year.
On a year-to-date basis, cash remittances reached US$10.49 billion, up by 3.2 percent from the year-ago level of US$10.17 billion.
The growth in cash remittances from the United States (U.S.), Singapore, and Saudi Arabia contributed mainly to the increase in remittances in the first four months of 2023. Meanwhile, in terms of country sources, the U.S. posted the highest share of overall remittances during the period, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and Japan.
