Remittances

with work contracts of one year or more grew by 2.1 percent to $16.3 billion, while transfers from sea-based workers and landbased workers with short- term contracts increased by 3.8 percent to $4.4 billion.

The result brought year-to-date remittances to $21.2 billion, 2.3 percent higher than the $20.723 billion registered in the comparable 2017 period.

Cash remittances, which only

count money coursed through banks, declined by 0.9 percent to $ 2.476 billion in August from $2.499 billion in the same month last year. It grew 3.12 percent, however, from the $2.401 billion recorded a month earlier.

The BSP said countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Qatar contributed to the decline.

Year to date, cash remittances grew by 2.5 percent to $19.057 billion from $18.595 billion last year and 14.9 percent from the $16.580 billion as of July 2018.

By country source, the BSP said more than 79 percent of total cash remittances came from the United States, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Singapore, Japan, the United Kingdom, Qatar, Canada, Germany and Hong Kong.

Sought for comment, ING Bank senior economist Nicholas Mapa attributed the year-on-year contraction to seasonality as well as possible late payments for workers.

“Nuances in exchange rates may have also caused the discrepancy given yearly growth rates,” he added.

Still, annual and year-to-date growth rates remain likely to average around 3 percent, Mapa said.