ADB sees Asia Pacific remittances up 5.9%

Remittances to the Asia Pacific region from citizens working abroad could grow 6.7 per cent this year and 5.9 per cent next year, after a 2 per cent slump in 2020, underpinned by further easing of Covid-19 curbs in advanced economies, the Asian Development Bank said.

In absolute terms, remittances to the region were expected to rise by $21.2 billion this year and $19.8 billion next year, the Manila-based lender said in a report published on Tuesday.

Inflows to the region last year reached $314 billion, the ADB said.

On average, the Asia Pacific region was estimated to account for about 63.4% of the total increase in global remittances in 2021 and 2022, the ADB said.

It said worldwide remittance receipts could increase by 4.8 per cent, or $34 billion, in 2021 and by 4.2 per cent, or $30.7 billion, in 2022.

About 60 per cent of the remittance inflows to the Asia-Pacific region would likely come from the United Kingdom, United States and the European Union, while nearly 30 per cent would be from the Middle East, it said.

The ADB has trimmed its growth forecasts for developing Asia - a group of 45 countries in the Asia-Pacific region - for this year and next to reflect risks and uncertainty brought on by the Omicron coronavirus variant.