
Remittances from workers at a record high
SBP on Wednesday reported a significant 27 percent growth in workers' remittances during the last fiscal year. The Pakistani diaspora sent record home remittances worth $38.3 billion in July-June of FY25 compared to $30.25 billion in same period of FY24, showing an impressive increase of $8 billion.
These workers' inflows are in line with the projection made by SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad, who had earlier revised the remittances target upward from $36 billion to $38 billion for the full fiscal year FY25.
Advisor to the finance minister, Khurram Schehzad, has credited the record-breaking home remittances in FY25 to the growing confidence of overseas Pakistanis in the government's economic direction and policy framework.
He said that with the arrival of these inflows, Pakistan not only surpassed its ambitious remittance target of $38 billion but also strengthened its external account position. 'These inflows have helped boost domestic liquidity, enhanced the country's external buffers, and significantly supported the foreign exchange reserves,' he said.
Khurram said that the historic surge in remittances also reflects growing trust of overseas Pakistanis in the economy and policy measures taken by the present government.
According to State Bank, Saudi Arabia is the largest contributor in remittances with a 24 percent share in the total inflows received during the last fiscal year. Inflows of remittances from Saudi Arabia rose by 26 percent to $9.345 billion in July-June of FY25 up from $7.424 billion in the same period of FY24.
UAE ranked second with $7.9 billion inflows, up by 42 percent, from $5.5 billion in the previous year.
Inflows from the UK and USA surged by 31 percent and 5 percent to reach $6 billion and $3.7 billion respectively in the last fiscal year.
Month on Month basis, Pakistan received home remittances amounted to $3.406 billion in June 2025 compared to $3.15 billion in June 2024, depicting an increase of $248 million. However, remittances in June 2025 are slightly lower than May 2025, in which the country received $3.7 billion inflows.
Interestingly, during the outgoing year, Pakistan also received all-time high monthly remittances of over $4 billion in March 2025, supported by Eid related inflows.
Mohammad Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, said that Pakistan received record remittance inflows at a critical and much needed time. 'In a year marked by economic challenges and uncertainty, however, overseas Pakistanis stepped up and demonstrated remarkable support for the country,' he said. He informed that Bangladesh has also saw record inflows of $30 billion, up by 26 percent. 'This a big source of support for both economies, helping bridge external gaps and boosting household incomes,' he added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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