Pakistanis working overseas remitted $8.592 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year, ranging from July 2011 to February 2012. This, the central bank reported Friday, shows an impressive growth of 23.40 per cent or over $1.629 billion, when compared with $6.963 billion the country received during the corresponding period, July- February FY2011.
The central bank attributes this impressive growth in the inflow of remittances to the Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI) and other stakeholders which was facilitating the overseas Pakistanis as well as their families back home.
“The continued impressive growth in worker remittances is the result of the efforts made by PRI in collaboration with other stakeholders to facilitate both overseas Pakistanis and their families back home,” the bank said.
It said the remittances received from all countries of the world showed growth during the review period.
During the months under review, the bank said, the inflow of remittances from Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA, UK, countries from Gulf Cooperation Council (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman) and EU amounted to $2.325 billion, $1.903 billion, $1.525 billion; $991.20, $968.91 and $244.91 million, respectively.
Last year, the Pakistani compatriots had remitted from these destinations $1.563, $1.627, $1.298 billion; $770.91, $820.02 and $220.24 million, respectively.
The remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries were counted at $632.45 million compared to $663.73 million received during last year.
A monthly average breakup of remittances for the review months comes out to $1.074 billion as against $870.41 million of the corresponding period last year. This depicts a growth of 23.40 per cent, the SBP said.
Last month in February, the bank said, $1.156 billion were sent back home by the Pakistani workers abroad, which showed an increase of 36.86 per cent over the same month when $845.28 million were remitted.
“Almost all of this growth in remittances during February, 2012 over the corresponding period of the last fiscal year was through banking channels,” observed the State Bank.
In February, it said, the inflow of remittances from Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA, UK, GCC and EU countries, respectively, aggregated to $317.51, $259.55, $197.14, $137.73, $123.50 and $29.27 million, respectively.
While in FY11’s February, the remittances were recorded at $209.60, $190.04, $152.55, $101.21, $98.55 and $24.58 million, respectively.
The dollar receipts from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during the month in review amounted to $92.11 million as against $68.75 million of the same month in FY2011.
