India Leads Global Remittances with $70 Billion In 2013


BANGALORE: According to the World Bank, India received $70 billion in 2013 in the form of remittances from international overseas workers and is topping the list. According to the World Bank's latest issue of the Migration and Development Brief, the home countries of international migrants from developing countries will receive $436 billion in remittances this year.

In 2014, remittance flows to developing countries will see an increase of 7.8 percent over the 2013 volume of $ 404 billion, rising to $ 516 billion in 2016. Global remittances, including those to high-income countries, are estimated at $581 billion this year, from $ 542 billion in 2013, rising to $ 681 billion in 2016. "Remittances have become a major component of the balance of payments of nations. India led the chart of remittance flows, receiving $ 70 billion last year (2013), followed by China with $ 60 billion and the Philippines with $ 25 billion," said Kaushik Basu, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist of the World Bank. India had received $ 69 billion in remittances in 2012.

Basu said there was no doubt that these flows act as an antidote to poverty and promote prosperity. "Remittances and migration data are also barometers of global peace and turmoil and this is what makes the World Bank's KNOMAD (Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development) initiative to organize, analyze, and make available these data so important," said Basu. For many developing countries, remittances are an important source of foreign exchange, surpassing earnings from major exports, and covering a substantial portion of imports.

In India, remittances during 2013 were $70 billion, more than the $65 billion earned from the country's flagship software services exports, the World Bank said. Dilip Ratha, Manager of the Migration and Remittances Team at the bank's Development Prospects Group said that in addition to the large annual flows of remittances, migrants living in high income countries are estimated to hold savings in excess of $ 500 billion annually. "These savings represent a huge pool of funds that developing countries can do much more to tap into," he said.

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Source: PTI