Remittances from Filipinos in Japan rebound in 2016

MANILA - Cash remittances from Filipinos working in Japan rebounded and became the second highest among such remittances from Asian countries last year, growing on the back of the rising Japanese yen against the U.S. dollar and an increase in the number of such workers, according to central bank data.

The value of remittances from Japan increased by 11.5 percent in 2016 to reach $1.4 billion, accounting for 5.1 percent of the total remittances of $26.9 billion for the year, after dropping 14 percent the previous year, the Philippine Central Bank data obtained by Kyodo News showed.

Rosabel B. Guerrero, the director of the central bank's department of statistics, said the appreciation of the Japanese yen against the U.S. dollar was one of the contributors in the recorded trend.

"Since remittances are reported in U.S. dollars, remittances from Japan when converted to U.S. dollars increase as the yen appreciates," Guerrero said.

"Another factor that could contribute to higher remittances is the increase in the number of overseas Filipinos remitting to the Philippines," she added. While the government's tally of Filipino workers in Japan for 2016 has yet to be made available, a steady increase has been recorded annually from 2010 to 2015.

According to the government-run Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, the number of Filipinos working in Japan increased 10.5 percent in 2015, despite accounting only for 1 percent of the recorded total deployment.

"The increase in deployment could be due to increasing demand for foreign workers to fill in the labor shortage," she added, citing reports that Japan is looking to fill in more jobs through foreign labor.

Guerrero said that from 2010 to 2015, the increase in remittances from Japan has been pegged at an annual average of 9.7 percent.

In 2016, remittances from Japan ranked as the second largest of those sent home to the Philippines by workers in Asian countries, surpassed only by those from Singapore, where remittances totaled $1.7 billion.

Overall, remittances from the United States were highest at $8.9 billion, followed by those from Saudi Arabia at $2.6 billion and the United Arab Emirates at $2.2 billion.