Development bank says remittances sliding for 2009
The amount of money sent home by foreign workers _ most in the United States _ is expected to fall for Latin America and the Caribbean as a whole this year.
By Agencies |
WASHINGTON: The amount of money sent home by foreign workers _ most in the United States _ is expected to fall for Latin America and the Caribbean as a whole this year, causing hardship for millions, the Inter-American Development Bank said Monday.
The bank said remittances rose 1 percent last year, hitting $69.2 billion. It did not say how much they would fall in 2009, but said the slip would end a decade of sharp growth that has boosted developing economies throughout the region. Remittances were counted at $30.9 billion in 2000, when the bank started monitoring them.
``A reduction means social problems because remittances are a principle source of income for millions of families,'' said IADB President Luis Alberto Moreno.
The bank said the slide _ due to global economic setbacks and tighter U.S. immigration controls _ began in the fourth quarter of 2008, with an overall 2 percent year-to-year drop for the period.
Remittances to Caribbean countries slid 6 percent in the fourth quarter and those in Central America were down 4 percent compared to the same period a year earlier. Worst hit was the Andean region, where an 18 percent rise in the first quarter became a 12 percent dive in the fourth.
According to the bank, Mexico received the most money from its citizens abroad, with $25 billion for the year. It was followed by Brazil, at $7.2 billion; Colombia, $4.8 billion; Guatemala, $4.3 billion; El Salvador, $3.8 billion; the Dominican Republic, $3.1 billion and Peru, $3 billion.
The bank said remittances rose 1 percent last year, hitting $69.2 billion. It did not say how much they would fall in 2009, but said the slip would end a decade of sharp growth that has boosted developing economies throughout the region. Remittances were counted at $30.9 billion in 2000, when the bank started monitoring them.
``A reduction means social problems because remittances are a principle source of income for millions of families,'' said IADB President Luis Alberto Moreno.
The bank said the slide _ due to global economic setbacks and tighter U.S. immigration controls _ began in the fourth quarter of 2008, with an overall 2 percent year-to-year drop for the period.
Remittances to Caribbean countries slid 6 percent in the fourth quarter and those in Central America were down 4 percent compared to the same period a year earlier. Worst hit was the Andean region, where an 18 percent rise in the first quarter became a 12 percent dive in the fourth.
According to the bank, Mexico received the most money from its citizens abroad, with $25 billion for the year. It was followed by Brazil, at $7.2 billion; Colombia, $4.8 billion; Guatemala, $4.3 billion; El Salvador, $3.8 billion; the Dominican Republic, $3.1 billion and Peru, $3 billion.
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