Mexico | Remittances almost immune to coronavirus crisis, decreasing by just 2.6% in April

Summary

Despite the unemployment rate increasing from 4.4% to 14.7% between March and April in the U.S. the flow of this resource fell by just 2.6% during April, amounting to USD 2,861 million. In April, remittances to Guatemala fell by 20.2%, while remittances to El Salvador fell by 40.0%.

Key points

• Key points:
• Despite the unemployment rate increasing from 4.4% to 14.7% between March and April in the United States—the main source of remittances to Mexico—the flow of this resource fell by just 2.6% during April, amounting to USD 2,861 million
• In other countries with large diasporas in the United States, remittances have fallen sharply. In April, remittances to Guatemala fell by 20.2%, while remittances to El Salvador fell by 40.0%
• Comparing variables such as the percentage of migrants with citizenship, level of educational and state of residence in the United States among migrants from Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador, reveals no evidence to explain the differences in the flow of remittances to these countries. It is necessary to analyze other variables that explain the flow of remittances in the context of the COVID-19 crisis

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