Home Business Imran Khan Thanks Overseas Pakistanis for ‘Record-Breaking’ Remittances

Imran Khan Thanks Overseas Pakistanis for ‘Record-Breaking’ Remittances

by Staff Report

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According to the State Bank of Pakistan, overseas Pakistanis remitted $2.436 billion in December 2020 compared to $2.097bn in December 2019

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday thanked overseas Pakistanis for remitting a “record-breaking” $2.4 billion in December 2020, a 16.2 percent increase over the $2.097 billion they had remitted in December 2019.

In a posting on Twitter, he said that the latest figures released by the State Bank of Pakistan showed remittances in excess of $2 billion for six consecutive months. “MashaAllah, first time in Pakistan remittances have been above $2 billion for six consecutive months,” he said. “Total for 6 months of this fiscal year are $14.2 billion—a 24.9 percent growth over last year,” he added.

“Remittances from overseas Pakistanis rose further to $2.4bn in December 2020, up 16.2 percent compared to December 2019 and up 4.2 percent over November 2020. For the first six months of this fiscal year, remittances have reached $14.2bn and risen 24.9 percent over last fiscal year,” read a central bank statement accompanying the data.

The State Bank data showed that 26 percent of December’s inflows came from Saudi Arabia, or $624.8 million. It said that monthly inflows from the Gulf kingdom had been largely consistent since June 2020, nearing $600 million. Similarly, it said that inflows from the United Arab Emirates accounted for 21 percent at $511.61 million, with the United Kingdom following in third with 13 percent of the total at $325 million.

Meanwhile, inflows from the United States rose to $203.23 million, while those from the European Union hit $245.95 million. Inflows from remaining Gulf Cooperation Council nations declined to 278.7 million in December 2020.

“This strong growth in workers’ remittances is attributable to the increased use of formal channels on the back of sustained efforts by the government and SBP to encourage inflows through official channels as well as limited cross-border travel due to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, together with favorable foreign exchange market dynamics,” the State Bank added in its statement on the data.

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