Remittances maintain rising trend

Remittances sent home by overseas Pakistanis continued to show a rising trend as an amount of 4.27731 billion dollar was received in the first seven months (July-January) of the current fiscal year 2008-09, an increase of 653.91 million dollar or 18.05 percent over the same period last fiscal year.
The amount of 4.27 billion dollar includes 0.39 million dollar received through encashment and profit earned on Foreign Exchange Bearer Certificates (FEBCs) and Foreign Currency Bearer Certificates (FCBCs). In January 2009, an amount of 637.30 million dollar was sent home by overseas Pakistanis, up 14.40 percent or 80.23 million dollar, when compared with 557.07 million dollar received in the same month last year.
The inflow of remittances in the July-January, 2009 period from USA, UAE, Saudi Arabia, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries amounted to 1,029.03 million dollar, 868.93 million dollar, 838.66 million dollar, 690.30 million dollar, 289.96 million dollar and 131.74 million dollar respectively as compared to 1,025.71 million dollar, 593.57 million dollar, 663.67 million dollar, 539.88 million dollar, 262.88 million dollar and 103.18 million dollar respectively in the July-January 2008 period. Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during the first seven months of the current fiscal year 2008-09 amounted to 428.30 million dollar as against 432.80 million dollar in the same period last year.
The monthly average remittances for the July-January period come to 611.04 million dollar as compared to 517.63 million dollar during the same period last fiscal year, an increase of 18.05 percent.
During the last month ie January 2009 remittances from UAE, USA, Saudi Arabia, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries amounted to 169.50 million dollar, 124.54 million dollar, 123.76 million dollar, 93.76 million dollar, 50.14 million dollar and 20.33 million dollar respectively as compared to 93.24 million dollar, 151.50 million dollar, 100.61 million dollar, 82.67 million dollar, 35.65 million dollar and 14.19 million dollar in January 2008. Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during January 2009 amounted to 54.25 million dollar.