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Remittance flows dip
2008-05-03 Jamaica Herald
There are indications that the government’s projections for a 10 per cent increase in remittance flows to US$2.2 billion this year could be wrong. This because of the slowing US economy, the increase in unemployment and discrimination, according to studies conducted by the Louis Alberto Moreno-led Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) during the month of February.
The studies conducted by the Washington-based institution indicate that the slowdown in the US economy to a rate of growth of 1.2 per cent during the last two months and the accompanying high levels of unemployment, were having a negative impact on remittance flows to Latin America and the Caribbean.
In a poll conducted in 50 states and the district of Columbia, it was revealed that 50 per cent of the respondents were still sending money back to their families on a regular basis, down from the 73 per cent recorded during the same period of the previous year. The principal causes for the dip were reported be the slowdown in the American economy and the harsher climate against immigration in the country.
Donald F Terry, general manager of the Multilateral Investment Fund, a subsidiary of the IDB, said that starting in 2000, remittances from the US to Latin America and the Caribbean grew at a steady clip as more immigrants sent back more money to their families on a regular basis.
The IDB top man, however, pointed out that there had been a dramatic shift since last year. The study further revealed that 81 per cent of all migrants said they were finding it more difficult to get better paying jobs now when compared with three months ago, while 40 per cent stressed that they were getting less money when compared with last year.
The survey, however, asserted that a whopping 68 per cent of the respondents in the state-by-state pool stressed that they were being discriminated against, when compared to 37 per cent a year ago. In support of this argument, the survey pointed out that millions of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants feared that their days in the US were numbered and, as a result, were holding on to their purse strings tightly.
It, however, contended that although there was a decline in the number of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants sending money back home, those who were doing it were doing so more frequently. The survey therefore contended that the volume of remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean could remain unchanged at $52.6 billion this year, with the Latin American portion amounting to US45.9 billion
Dramatic Shift.
The IDB further posited that while the volumes will likely remain steady, the fact that millions of immigrants will either stop sending money or send less will lead to an increase in poverty levels in the region.
Immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean are typically unskilled labourers who earn about US$1,600 per month.
The largest drops in remittance flows were recorded in states such as Pennsylvania, California, Maryland, Virginia, Nevada, Colorado, Washington and Massachusetts.
Remittances to Latin America will top US$1 billion in 10 states such as California, Texas, Florida, Washington D.C, Nevada, Colorado and Massachusetts. The survey had a margin of error of + 1.4 or –1.4 per cent.
The MIF started to track remittance flows during the year 2,000 in order to gauge their economic importance to economic development in the region and indeed, globally. The cost of effecting these transactions from the US to the region has declined significantly in recent times and this was the major factor behind the spike this year. This has led to increased competition on slim margins.
2008-05-03 Jamaica Herald
There are indications that the government’s projections for a 10 per cent increase in remittance flows to US$2.2 billion this year could be wrong. This because of the slowing US economy, the increase in unemployment and discrimination, according to studies conducted by the Louis Alberto Moreno-led Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) during the month of February.
The studies conducted by the Washington-based institution indicate that the slowdown in the US economy to a rate of growth of 1.2 per cent during the last two months and the accompanying high levels of unemployment, were having a negative impact on remittance flows to Latin America and the Caribbean.
In a poll conducted in 50 states and the district of Columbia, it was revealed that 50 per cent of the respondents were still sending money back to their families on a regular basis, down from the 73 per cent recorded during the same period of the previous year. The principal causes for the dip were reported be the slowdown in the American economy and the harsher climate against immigration in the country.
Donald F Terry, general manager of the Multilateral Investment Fund, a subsidiary of the IDB, said that starting in 2000, remittances from the US to Latin America and the Caribbean grew at a steady clip as more immigrants sent back more money to their families on a regular basis.
The IDB top man, however, pointed out that there had been a dramatic shift since last year. The study further revealed that 81 per cent of all migrants said they were finding it more difficult to get better paying jobs now when compared with three months ago, while 40 per cent stressed that they were getting less money when compared with last year.
The survey, however, asserted that a whopping 68 per cent of the respondents in the state-by-state pool stressed that they were being discriminated against, when compared to 37 per cent a year ago. In support of this argument, the survey pointed out that millions of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants feared that their days in the US were numbered and, as a result, were holding on to their purse strings tightly.
It, however, contended that although there was a decline in the number of Latin American and Caribbean immigrants sending money back home, those who were doing it were doing so more frequently. The survey therefore contended that the volume of remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean could remain unchanged at $52.6 billion this year, with the Latin American portion amounting to US45.9 billion
Dramatic Shift.
The IDB further posited that while the volumes will likely remain steady, the fact that millions of immigrants will either stop sending money or send less will lead to an increase in poverty levels in the region.
Immigrants from Latin America and the Caribbean are typically unskilled labourers who earn about US$1,600 per month.
The largest drops in remittance flows were recorded in states such as Pennsylvania, California, Maryland, Virginia, Nevada, Colorado, Washington and Massachusetts.
Remittances to Latin America will top US$1 billion in 10 states such as California, Texas, Florida, Washington D.C, Nevada, Colorado and Massachusetts. The survey had a margin of error of + 1.4 or –1.4 per cent.
The MIF started to track remittance flows during the year 2,000 in order to gauge their economic importance to economic development in the region and indeed, globally. The cost of effecting these transactions from the US to the region has declined significantly in recent times and this was the major factor behind the spike this year. This has led to increased competition on slim margins.