Pak remittances at all-time high of $2.8b in Mar

The inflow of workers' remittances soared beyond maret expectations and hit an all-time high at $2.8 billion in March, extending much-needed support to foreign exchange reserves and the rupee value against the US dollar, reports The Express Tribune.
"These are the highest-ever monthly workers' remittances," Pakistan's central bank announced on Thursday.
Cumulatively, the remittances rose to $23 billion in the first nine months (July-March) of current fiscal year 2021-22, up 7.1% over the same period of previous year, it added.
Historical trends suggest that overseas Pakistani always send record high remittances during the month of Ramazan and before Eid holidays every year, according to experts.
"The flow of remittances amounting to $2.8 billion into the country in March was higher than market expectations," Pak-Kuwait Investment Company Head of Research Samiullah Tariq said while talking to The Express Tribune.
Earlier, the market was expecting the remittances to remain in the range of $2.5-2.6 billion in March considering that international travel was gaining momentum following the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many people prefer to carry funds while visiting their home country instead of sending them through banking channels.
With the latest inflow of $2.8 billion, the workers' remittances have continued the unprecedented trend of staying above $2 billion over the last 22 months (since June 2020), the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said.
In terms of growth, the remittances increased 28.3% in March 2022 compared to the previous month of February and were up 3.2% compared to March 2021.
Remittances during the month under review were mainly sourced from Saudi Arabia ($678 million), the United Arab Emirates ($515 million), the United Kingdom ($401 million) and the United States ($300 million), the central bank said.
The foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank decreased 4.15% on a weekly basis, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Thursday.
On April 8, the foreign currency reserves held by the SBP were recorded at $10,849.6 million, down $470 million compared with $11,319.2 million on April 1.
According to the central bank, the decrease came mainly due to external debt repayments.
Overall liquid foreign currency reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $17,028.1 million. Net reserves held by banks amounted to $6,178.5 million.