23/02/2021
Remittance flows in 2021 may not be as slim as feared -study | Reuters
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JANUARY 27, 2021 / 5:15 PM / UPDATED A MONTH AGO
Remittance flows in 2021 may not be as slim as feared -study
By Tom Arnold
LONDON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Money transfers from migrants overseas could rebound to prepandemic levels, upending a World Bank forecast of a further slowdown in remittances to
developing countries in 2021, according to a new study.
Remittances, an important source of external financing for low and middle-income countries,
have not slumped as much as initially feared during the coronavirus pandemic, even
rebounding to some economies, including Mexico, El Salvador, Kenya, Pakistan, Bangladesh,
the Philippines and Sri Lanka. Uncertainty around the outlook for remittances is high, noted
the report by Oxford Economics commissioned by Western Union. But it added that as
advanced economies recover and if demand for funds from developing economies remained
high, then remittance performance in 2021 could even return to pre-pandemic levels.
“Crises make people more determined to provide support to the people they care about.
When times get hard in developing economies, remittance-senders become front-line
workers of economic security,” said Hikmet Ersek, President and CEO of Western Union, in a
statement accompanying the report.
“In the massive task of rebuilding developing nations in a post-pandemic world, millions of
these economic first responders will continue to step up.”
The report added, however, that remittances could also decline further as more money may
be sent by unofficial channels, as borders start to re-open, and if a fall in the stock of migrant
workers seen in 2020 continues.
https://www.reuters.com/article/markets-emerging-remittances-idUSL8N2K043D
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