Remittances down to 12-month low in May 2026

Remittances from overseas Filipinos fell to a 12-month low in May 2026, data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday showed.

Cash remittances or money transfers coursed through banks and other formal channels stood at $2.713 billion, down from $2.718 billion in April. It is also the lowest in a year since the $2.658 billion in May 2025.

This brought year-to-date cash remittances to $14.110 billion, up from $13.768 billion in the comparable period of 2025.

The United States remained the biggest source of inflows with 39.4%, followed by Singapore with 7.4%, Saudi Arabia with 6.4%, Japan with 5.1%, the United Kingdom with 4.6%, the United Arab Emirates with 4.3%, Canada with 3.3%, Qatar with 2.9%, Taiwan with 2.8%, and South Korea with 2.7%.

The BSP noted, however, that remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source. These are instead recorded under the country where the courier's main office is located—often the United States.

Personal remittances—the sum of transfers sent in cash or in kind, including those coursed through informal channels—stood at $3.033 billion, down from $3.037 billion in April, but higher than the $2.971 billion in May 2025.

Year-to-date personal remittances were recorded at $15.735 billion, higher than the $15.343 billion the same period last year. — VDV, GMA News