Mexican Migrants Sent Record $36B In Remittances In 2019

Instability in Mexico and Latin America drove a wave of migrant workers to send a record amount of remittances to their home countries in 2019. Mexico’s Central Bank reported that Mexican migrants working overseas sent home a record-high $36 billion in remittances in 2019, a 7 percent increase from 2018.

According to a study from the Inter-American Dialogue, between 2016 and 2017, remittances to Mexico increased by 12 percent, a sharp rise from previous years.

States with the largest population of Mexican-born immigrants rank highest in remittance transfers. The states with the highest transfers include California ($8.84 billion), Texas ($4.3 billion), Illinois ($1.4 billion), New York ($1.8 billion), Florida ($1.15 billion), and Georgia ($1.0 billion). California accounted for nearly 29 percent of the total remittances to Mexico from 2014 to 2017. During this same time period, the percentage of the Mexican-born population in the U.S. dropped slightly by 1.3 percent while remittances spiked to nearly 8 percent.

Beginning in the late 1980s, Mexico transitioned from a closed economy to a market-oriented economy. Mexico further accelerated its market-based economy by entering into the NAFTA agreement in 1994 and exports became a major source of revenue. Still, Mexico is highly dependent on the United States for exports and remittances. Remittances replaced oil exports as Mexico’s largest source of foreign exchange, according to a Congressional Research Service report.

Left-wing activists storming synagogue use knee pads, adult diaper to mock Dem congressman over ICE vote

ICE lodges detainer for illegal immigrant accused of sexually assaulting teen

US approves massive arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia for more than $15 billion amid Middle East tensions

Letitia James fires attorney consumer fraud over criticism of pediatric ‘gender care’

DOJ Releases Massive Trove of Epstein Files Documents, Statement on Trump Involvement

Rep Jeffries escalates rhetoric against Noem, says DHS leader should be ‘put on ice permanently’

Coast Guard searching for survivors after commercial fishing boat sinks off Massachusetts; 1 body recovered

‘Opening Pandora’s Box’: Mike Johnson backs Trump after warning White House about deal with Democrats

Pam Bondi Releases Video Statement After the Arrest of Don Lemon: ‘We Are Coming After You’

Panama court cancels Hong Kong canal contracts, handing Trump win

Federal judge strikes down parts of Trump executive order on citizenship verification for voter registration

With Trump weighing military operations against Iran, questions remain on targets and objectives

Hillary Clinton’s Hit Piece Against Several Christian Leaders Doesn’t Get the Response She Was Hoping for: ‘I’ve Never Been More Proud’

Looming government shutdown threatens service members, FEMA, TSA amid ICE impasse

Don Lemon Charged with Civil Rights Crimes for St. Paul Church Storming

From foreign tourism, Mexico receives about $25 billion while only $22.4 billion in annual petroleum exports.

Mexico’s poverty rate remains high despite its openness to the international economic system. The poverty rate stands at 41.9 percent as of 2018 according to the International Monetary Fund. People working in the subsistence farming or informal sector of the economy are among Mexico’s poorest citizens and are especially reliant on remittances from the U.S. to pay for basic essential needs.

Remittance flows could remain high with Mexico’s economy projected to remain sluggish. The International Monetary Fund predicts meager economic growth for Mexico at 1 percent in 2020. Mexico’s 2019 third-quarter growth remained stagnant as well.

The rise in remittances from the United States to Mexico is happening alongside an overall downside trajectory in immigration from Mexican migrants to the U.S.

Across the wider Latin America region, remittances grew by 4.7 percent in 2019, according to a study published by Manuel Orozco, director of the Migration, Remittances, and Development Program at the Inter-American Dialogue.