Remittances sent to the Philippines reached $1.67 billion in October, the highest monthly level so far recorded, given robust demand by foreign companies for Filipino skilled and professional workers.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (central bank) reported that the latest amount of remittances from Filipinos abroad was higher by 9.3 percent from $1.53 billion in October last year.
Remittances in October brought the total for the first 10 months to $15.46 billion, up 7.9 percent from $14.32 billion in the same period last year.
BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said the move of Filipino banks to expand their remittance channels worldwide also helped increase inflows as sending money became easier.
The central bank said remittances in October came mostly from the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Italy, Germany and Norway.
Tetangco cited a report by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) showing a robust demand for Filipino workers by companies offshore. Job orders for Filipino workers reached 578,535 from January to October this year. These orders involved professional and technical jobs.
The central bank chief said remittances were expected to remain strong over the short to medium term given the expanding labor markets for Filipinos. He said that although some countries, especially industrialized Western nations, were having difficulty accelerating their recovery from the latest global crisis, growth of alternative labor markets was seen to boost demand for Filipino workers.
Tetangco said ongoing talks between the Department of Labor and Employment with its counterparts in foreign countries would also help sustain strong inflows of remittances.
"Looking ahead, the deployment outlook for Filipinos overseas remain upbeat given the continuing bilateral talks with some host countries, aimed at matching manpower requirements with the competencies of Filipino workers," Tetangco said.
He cited Algeria and Guam as countries that have expressed interest to hire more Filipino workers in 2011. Algeria is planning to implement infrastructure projects while Guam is about to hire for the construction of a military base.
Remittances, which fuel consumption of Filipino households, have been credited for helping the Philippine economy escape a recession last year and post a robust growth this year.
In 2009, when remittances reached $17.3 billion, the economy grew 1.1 percent. This was a slowdown from the previous year's 3.8 percent, but was better compared with the growth performance of most developed countries, which fell into recession.
The Philippines is the world's fourth-biggest recipient of remittances after China, India and Mexico.
