KARACHI: Remittances sent home by overseas Pakistanis continue to show a rising trend as an amount of dollars 5,291.41 million was received in the first half of the current fiscal year.This showed an increase of dollars 761.23 million or 16.80 percent when compared to dollars 4,530.18 million received over the same period of the last fiscal year, said a statement issued by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) here on Tuesday.The monthly average of remittances for the July-December 2010 period comes out to $ 881.90 million as compared to $755.04 million during the same corresponding period of the last fiscal year, registering an increase of 16.80 percent.The inflow of remittances in the period of July-December 2010 from UAE, Saudi Arabia, USA, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries amounted to $1,255.65 million, $1,143.82 million, $997.68 million, $626.29 million, $577.17 million and $172.10 million respectively as compared to $1,021.91 million, $845.91 million, $938.40 million, $642.45 million, $482.79 million and $142.79 million respectively in the July-December, 2009 period.
Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during the first half of the current fiscal year amounted to $518.69 million as against $454.94 million in the same period last year.In December 2010, an amount of $863.11 million was sent home by overseas Pakistanis, up 23.72 percent or $165.51 million, when compared with $697.60 million received in the same month last year.During last month, the remittances from UAE, Saudi Arabia, USA, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries were to $210.33 million, $208.06 million, $156.36 million, $95.99 million, $81.08 million and $24.53 million respectively as compared to $167.67 million, $137.56 million, $141.22 million, $97.57 million, $74.30 million and $18.89 million in December 2009. Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during December 2010 amounted to $86.76 million compared with $60.33 million in the same month last year.The State Bank, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis had undertaken a joint initiative called ‘Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI)’ with a view to facilitating the flow of remittances through formal channels. This initiative has started to materialise and remittances through formal channels are showing considerable growth – APP
