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Ahead of the opening of classes, Filipinos abroad sent home $2.31 billion in May, a 5.5 percent increase year-on-year, which kept monthly remittances above the $2-billion level for the 16th straight month.
Cash remittances sent through banks last May rose from $2.188 billion a year ago and exceeded the $2.083 billion in April, the latest Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas data released Monday showed.
The growth in cash remittances that month reversed the 5.9-percent drop posted in April.
In a statement, BSP Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. said remittances from land-based overseas Filipino workers in May rose 6.2 percent year-on-year to $1.8 billion, while those from sea-based OFWs grew 3 percent to $500 million.
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Espenilla said the top contributors to the increase in cash remittances last May were the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
From January to May, remittances totaled $11.346 billion, up 4.5 percent from $10.859 billion in the first five months of last year.
