Ing Sees Little Remittance Growth In

[Mr Lee]

http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstor...ce-growth-in-09 ING sees little remittance growth in '09 Philippine Daily InquirerFirst Posted 01:43:00 01/02/2009Foreign exchange sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are likely to slow down significantly to a 3.0-4.0 percent growth this year because of the weakening global economy, according to projections of the Dutch financial giant ING.Remittances coursed through the banking system have exceeded $1 billion every month since May 2006, and the central bank expects a 13-percent growth this year.ING economist Jose Mario Cuyegkeng, in a presentation to the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines, said, "Regression analysis reveals that for every one-percentage-point cut in US growth, Philippine OFW remittance growth is cut by 0.9 percentage point."In 2008, the impact of the global downturn was offset by high overseas deployment of Filipino workers. Cuyegkeng said the full impact might be felt by the second half of 2009.Slower growth in OFW remittances would slacken the growth of the economy to 3.8-4.1 percent, which may prompt the central bank to further ease monetary policy, he said.ING had earlier forecast the 2009 growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) at 5.1-6.0 percent. The government's growth target is 3.7-4.7 percent.Including money sent home by OFWs through non-banking channels, remittance inflows will likely amount to $16.9 billion, or about 10 percent of the GDP, central bank officials said at a recent news briefing.The central bank, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, expects OFW remittances to remain strong this year although not as strong as in previous years, given the uncertainty in the financial environment.The remittances through banks grew by a modest 3.3 percent year-on-year in October