H1 remittances soar 33pc to $17.845bn YoY

KARACHI: Inflows of home remittances remained strong, rising by 33 percent during the first half of the current fiscal year (FY25).

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reported on Friday that overseas Pakistanis sent a record $17.845 billion from July to December FY25, compared to $13.435 billion during the same period of the previous fiscal year (FY24). This marks an impressive increase of $4.4 billion in the first half of FY25.

Analysts said that home remittances have posted sufficient growth in a crucial period, when the country needs healthy inflows for external debt servicing and building the foreign exchange reserves. Consistently higher worker’s remittances inflows may also give regulators the flexibility they need to efficiently control repatriation outflows and provide support on external financing, they said.

Pakistan’s remittance inflow at $3.1bn in December 2024, up 6% month-on-month

Pakistan has received an average of $3 billion per month in home remittances over the past ten months, a notable increase from the $2.4 billion monthly average recorded in FY23 and much of FY24.

Saudi Arabia remains the largest contributor, with remittances totaling $4.423 billion in the first half of FY25, marking a 36 percent increase. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) ranked second, with inflows rising by an impressive 54 percent to $3.58 billion during July-December FY25, compared to $2.32 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

The United Kingdom also saw a significant rise, with remittances increasing by 33 percent to $2.64 billion, up from $1.988 billion in the first half of FY24. Similarly, inflows from the United States grew by 12.5 percent, reaching $1.77 billion during July-December FY25.

Monthly statistics revealed that workers’ remittances recorded an inflow of $ 3.1 billion during December 2024 as against $2.38 billion in December 2023, climbing 29.3 percent or $718 million. Inflows in December 2024 are also 5.6 percent higher than November 2024, in which the country received $2.91 billion remittances.

In December 2024, remittance inflows were primarily sourced from Saudi Arabia, contributing $770.6 million. The UAE followed with $631.5 million, while the United Kingdom and the United States accounted for $456.9 million and $284.3 million, respectively.

Analysts said a major driver of growth is the strong remittance flow from UAE, which posted 51 percent YoY growth in Dec-2024. The UAE share in remittances inflows during the last two fiscal years was 17.5 percent which has now increased to 20.5 percent, with major share from the region being contributed by Dubai.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025