NBU: Volume of remittances by labor migrants to Ukraine expected to decrease in 2020

The volume of transactions by labor migrants to Ukraine is expected to decrease from USD 12.5 billion to USD 10 billion in 2020.

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) said this in its Inflation Report for April 2020, the central bank’s press service reported.

"According to expert estimates, about 10% of labor migrants have returned to Ukraine since quarantine introduction, and another 10%, who planned to leave for seasonal jobs in the second quarter, will remain in Ukraine. At the same time, the income of those workers abroad will decrease due to the economic slowdown in these countries. In view of this, the National Bank has revised the forecast of remittances of labor migrants to Ukraine from USD 12.5 billion to USD 10 billion," reads the report.

It notes that this forecast is based on the assumption that most quarantine measures will be lifted by the end of Q2 2020. However, the decline in remittances from labor migrants will be more than offset by the reduction in foreign travel expenses of Ukrainians.

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