O.F. REMITTANCES SEEN TO BREACH $33.5B IN ‘24

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

CASH remittances sent by overseas Filipinos could surpass $33.5 billion next year, which could be the highest in at least six years, fueled by improved economic conditions abroad.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas ph/2023/08/14/bsp-efforts-tostabilize-phl-peso-successful/)

(BSP) Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. said at a Senate Committee on Finance hearing that they expect cash remittances to “rise further” next year from this year’s projected total amount of $33.5 billion.

Remolona made the remarks just as the BSP released on Tuesday the latest figures on cash remittances coursed through banks, indicating a 2.9-percent year-onyear increase in the total amount recorded for the first half. Based on the BSP’s projections, total cash remittances this year would grow by 3.07 percent yearon-year to $33.5 billion from $32.5 billion last year. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.

Executive Director Jeremaiah

M. Opiniano of the Institute for Migration and Development Issues concurred with Remolona in the expectations that total overseas Filipinos’ cash remittances would further increase next year.

“It will be surprising if remittances fall. With the US economy making a rebound as reported by CNN [citing US data], at least temporarily the world is enjoying a post-pandemic economic recovery [with some fits of slowdown like countries such as China]. So while there are these positive trends, migrants abroad try to send as many incomes as possible,” Opiniano told the BusinessMirror

First-half cash remittances

BSP data showed that first half cash remittances reached $15.79 billion, about $44 million higher than the $15.35 billion recorded in the January-to-June period of last year.

The BSP attributed the 3-percent increase in cash remittances to higher cash remittances from the United States, Singapore and as of by surpassing even the toll of a 1960

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

NOTWITHSTANDING the risks to the country’s economic growth, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) believes the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth targets in 2023 and in 2024 to 2028 remain achievable.

At the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) Briefing to the Senate on the Proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 National Budget on Tuesday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said “risks to the growth we took into account last year remained today.”

Balisacan said the domestic risks included elevated prices due to inadequate food supplies and, with the typhoons and natural disasters, the onset of El Niño which may last until the first quarter of 2024, and the spread of highly infectious animal diseases.

Meanwhile, external risks included “elevated” international commodity and input prices, lower global outlook and geopolitical and trade tensions.

Despite these risks, he said, “we believe the GDP growth targets—i.e., 6 to 7 percent in 2023 and 6.5 to 8 percent in 2024 to

2028—remain achievable.”

For 2023, Balisacan said the economy needs to grow by 6.6 percent in the second semester to achieve this year’s 6 to 7 percent growth, or an additional 0.4-percentage point from the baseline forecast of 6.2 percent for the second semester. Moving forward, he listed government’s plans to attain these targets.

First, the need to sustain the downtrend in inflation by intensifying supply-side interventions and demand-side management. He said inflation is seen to go back to the 2 to 4