SANTO DOMINGO- The Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD) reported this Monday that during the first seven months of 2023, remittances received reached US$5,909.3 million, representing a growth of 4.2% compared to the same period of the previous year.
It indicates that this increase is in line with the projection of exceeding US$10 billion by the end of 2023.
The agency maintains that remittances in July totaled US$889.4 million, a 5.1% increase compared to June 2023, and a 10.0% increase compared to July 2022. These flows mark the seventh consecutive month of increase this year, extending the trend observed since the beginning of the last quarter of 2022.
The Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD) explains that the economic performance of the United States was one of the main factors that influenced the behavior of remittances, since 82.6% of the formal flows in July came from that country, some US$654.8 million.
Likewise, the overall unemployment rate in the United States fell from 3.6% in June to 3.5% in July. Additionally, the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) registered a value of 52.7 in July, indicating sustained expansion in the services sector, where the majority of the Dominican diaspora is employed.
Issuers
The Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD) also highlights the receipt of remittances through formal channels from other countries in July, such as Spain, which received US$53.9 million, representing 6.8% of the total. Spain is the second largest recipient of remittances from the Dominican diaspora abroad. Haiti and Italy each accounted for 0.9% of the total flows received. The remaining remittances were distributed among countries such as Switzerland, Canada, and Panama, among others.
