Remittances sent by overseas Pakistani workers surged 27.42% month-on-month to $2.53 billion in March 2023 from $1.98 billion in the previous month. Yearly, the remittances, however, posted a 10.65% fall as overseas Pakistanis sent $2.83 billion back home in March 2022, the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan on Monday showed.

Likewise, remittances dropped 10.82% to $20.526 billion in the first nine months (July-March) of the ongoing fiscal year from $23.018 billion recorded over the corresponding period of FY22. Pakistan received the largest share ($563.9 million) from Saudi Arabia followed by $406.7 million from the United Arab Emirates, $422 million from the United Kingdom and $253.6 million from the USA.

Additionally, overseas Pakistanis sent home $42.5 million from Bahrain, $77.9 million from Kuwait, $83.6 million from Qatar and $93.5 million from Oman in March. Pakistan received remittances of $58.2 million, $42.3 million, $9.7 million, $44.7 million, $78.3 million, $30.2 million, $7.3 million, $7.5 million, $11.4 million and $9.1 million, respectively, from Germany, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Greece, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, and Belgium.

Over $7 million, $10.6 million, $4.4 million, $51.6 million, $52.6 million, and $6.7 million, respectively, were received from Malaysia, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, and Japan in March. In March, Pakistan received $13.5 million from its citizens living in South Africa, $8.5 million from South Korea and $72.8 million from other countries.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk