Personal remittances by overseas Filipinos grew by 2.8 percent to $3.10 billion in August from $3.02 billion in the same month last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, or BSP, reported Monday.

Data from the BSP showed the growth stemmed from higher remittances from land-based workers with job contracts valid for one year or more, and sea and land-based workers with contracts expiring in less than one year.

The first group posted a 3.1 percent increase, while the latter recorded a 1.4 percent growth year-on-year.

As a result, personal remittances from overseas Filipinos from January to August increased to $24.01 billion, higher by 2.9 percent than the $23.34 billion in the same period a year ago.

Breaking down personal remittances, cash remittances sent through banks rose by 2.7 percent in August to $2.80 billion, surpassing the $2.72 billion recorded in the same month last year.

Cash remittances from land-based workers grew by 3.2 percent, while those of sea-based workers also increased by 1 percent year-on-year.

Transfers higher by 2.8%

From January to August, cash remittances increased by 2.8 percent to $21.58 billion from $20.99 billion in the same period in 2022.

The biggest inflow of cash remittances came from the United States with 41.6 percent share of the total amount during that period. The other top sources were Singapore with 6.9 percent and Saudi Arabia with 5.9 percent.

Economists expect personal remittances from overseas Filipinos to further increase as the Christmas season approaches.

Historical data from the BSP show these remittances usually shoot up from around $2.8 billion to $3.2 billion between November and December.