MANILA, April 24 (Reuters) - Money sent home by Filipinos
working and living abroad is likely to decline this year from
the last, the Philippine central bank said on Friday, a
discouraging sign for the consumption-driven economy.
Illuminada Sicat, assistant governor of the Bangko Sentral
ng Pilipinas, said growth in remittances could contract by 0.2
to 0.8 percentage points this year, as the coronavirus pandemic
hits global growth, trade and tourism.
Remittances, a key driver of domestic demand, rose 4.1% in
2019 to a record high of $30.1 billion from $28.9 billion in the
previous year.