Remittances a concern

[NewsWhore]

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) says that in 2008, for the first time in a decade, Latin America and the Caribbean will experience a decrease in remittances. The expected decrease will result from the economic crises in the US and Spain, inflationary pressures and the weak dollar. The IDB's report indicates that families and friends will send back more than US$67 billion in remittances in 2008, an increase from last year's 66.5 billion. But if adjusted for inflation it is 1.7% less than 2007 figures. The trend can already be seen in Spain where the Banco de Espana says that remittances during the first half of the year totaled EUR1.7 billion, which is 7.3% less than the first half of 2007. Remittances are a leading source of hard currency in the DR.

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