DR received US$ 5,669.7 million in remittances, in the first seven months of 2022.
This figure exceeds by US$ 1,572.0 million, the figure reached in the same period of 2019, indicates the most recent report issued by the Central Bank.
In the first seven months of 2022, the Dominican Republic received remittances in the amount of US$ 5,669.7 million, a figure that exceeds by US$ 1,572.0 million, that reached in the same period of 2019, indicates the most recent report issued by the Central Bank.
The report indicates that when comparing the flows received as of July 2022 with those of the same period of 2021, a reduction of about US$ 490 million is observed.
The Bank points out that in the month of July 2022 remittances totaled US$ 808.6 million, which reaffirms the establishment of a new level of monthly remittance flows.
In that sense, when comparing this July 2022 amount with the value averaged in the same month for the period prior to the 2015-2019 pandemic, which was US$ 533.1 million, a significant increase is observed.
The document explains that the labor market conditions in the United States is one of the main factors that continues to influence the behavior of remittances, since 84.2% of the flows in July came from that country.
It also states that the U.S. economy created 528 thousand jobs, reducing the unemployment rate from 3.6 % in June to 3.5 % in July 2022. In particular, Hispanic unemployment in the U.S. fell from 4.3% in June to 3.9% in July.
The BCRD also highlights the receipt of remittances from other countries, such as Spain, in the order of 6.3%, the second country in terms of total Dominican diaspora residents abroad, as well as Haiti and Italy with 1.3% and 0.8% of the flows received, respectively. The rest of the remittances received are divided among countries such as Switzerland, Canada and Panama, among others.
Regarding the distribution of remittances received by provinces, the BCRD indicates that the National District obtained the highest proportion, 33.9%, followed by the provinces of Santiago and Santo Domingo, with 14.3% and 8.9%, respectively. This indicates that more than half (57.1%) of the remittances are received in the metropolitan areas of the country.
The agency reaffirms that the evolution of the external sector for this year will be characterized by the dynamism of remittances, exports, foreign direct investment and the recovery of tourism, highlighting that, in recent months, this activity has continuously registered record figures in tourist arrivals.
These developments will contribute to a greater flow of foreign exchange into the country and will help maintain the relative stability of the exchange rate currently observed, such that the exchange rate showed an appreciation of 5.3 % at the end of July with respect to December 2021.
All these elements, together with the country’s robust macroeconomic fundamentals, indicate that the Dominican Republic possesses particularly favorable conditions to accommodate external shocks coming from a complex and uncertain international environment.
The institution indicates that this increased flow of foreign exchange has also allowed the accumulation of international reserves, which by the end of July 2022 stood at over US$14.1 billion, representing about 13.0% of GDP and equivalent to about 6.0 months of imports.
These metrics exceed the levels recommended by the IMF, contributing to the Dominican Republic maintaining a favorable external position, projecting a flow of remittances for the end of 2002 of around US$10 billion.
The Central Bank reiterates that it remains vigilant to continue taking the necessary measures to counteract the impact of the challenging international environment on the Dominican economy, in order to guarantee price and exchange market stability.
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