Remittances from major destinations on dive

Inward remittances from 13 major countries out of 18 marked a sharp fall so far in the current fiscal year against the corresponding previous period.
Officials said the inflow of remittances from six Middle-Eastern countries along with two others dropped more than 15 per cent during the July-November period of the fiscal  year (FY) 2016-17.
Lower development activities in the Gulf Cooperation Council economies because of rock-bottom prices of fuel oils on the international market are seen as a major cause.
Bangladesh received a total of US$ 2.99 billion in remittances from the eight countries during the period under review. It was $3.53 billion in the same period of the FY'16.
The inflow of remittance from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), a major importer of Bangladeshi manpower, dropped by 22.85 per cent or $285.45 million to $963.83 million in the first five months of the FY'17 from $1.25 billion in the same period of the last fiscal.
Remittance from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) treads the KSA track as it also fell sharply by nearly 21 per cent or $227.30 million to $874.18 million during the period against $874.18 million a year ago, according the central bank latest statistics.
However, the remittance inflow from Qatar, another Middle-Eastern country, jumped by nearly 49 per cent or $72.22 million to $220 million in the first five months of the FY'17 from $148 million a year before.
Infrastructure-development activities in Qatar have been expedited as preparations are afoot for hosting the next FIFA World Cup in 2022, according to a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB).
"A good number of infrastructure development projects are now being implemented in that country to stage the World Cup properly," the central banker explained.
Bangladesh also received lower remittances from Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Libya and Iran, the BB data showed.
On the other hand, the remittance inflow from the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) also dropped by $368.47 million and $81.35 million respectively.
The remittance from the US shrank to $683.51 million from $1.05 billion while the inflow from the UK fell to $272.44 million from $353.79 million.
Receipts from other countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong also dropped during the period under review.
Overall remittance inflow dropped by 15.65 cent in the first five months of the current FY compared to the same period of the last fiscal.
The remittance receipts came down to $5.21 billion during the July-November period of the FY'17 from $6.17 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal.
Single-month receipts were estimated $951.37 million in November 2016, down by $59.62 million from the level of the previous month. In October last, the remittances came to $1.01 billion. It was $1.14 billion in November 2015.
"The flow of inward remittances dropped significantly in the recent months following lower fuel-oil prices on the global market alongside a rising trend in sending hard-earned money by expatriate Bangladeshis using informal channels," another BB official told the FE to explain the fall.
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