India To Top Global Remittances With $71 Billion This Year

The growth rate this year is substantially faster than the 3.4 per cent growth recorded in 2013, driven largely by remittances to Asia and Latin America, it said.

Remittances to developing countries will continue climbing in the medium term, reaching an estimated $454 billion in 2015.

Global remittances, including those to high-income countries, are estimated at $582 billion this year, rising to $608 billion next year, it said.

The Bank said remittances to the South Asia region are increasing more robustly this year, accelerating from slower growth in 2013.

Although flows to India, the region's largest remittance recipient, will grow modestly by 1.5 per cent in 2014.

The expansion is being led by flows from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, where skilled and unskilled workers are finding renewed job opportunities.

As a result, the growth rate of remittances to the region is expected to more than double this year to 5.5 per cent (from 2.7 per cent in 2013), boosting volumes to $117 billion in 2014 and rising further to $123 billion in 2015, it said.

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