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.

Cultural groups ask federal judge to halt Trump’s renovations of Kennedy Center

Georgia man says he suffered severe medical neglect leading to amputations at scrutinized Atlanta jail

LAPD chief warns Los Angeles not prepared to secure 2028 Olympics due to staffing shortages

House Republicans unlock reconciliation process to fund ICE and Border Patrol without Democrats

Small-town Virginia mayor reportedly arrested for allegedly showing up drunk to train derailment

Romanian national learns fate for swatting US officials, including members of Congress, judges

Melania Trump embraces AI education initiative in White House tech push: ‘She’s been a champion’

‘The View’ Floats Dangerous Conspiracy Theory About Trump Days After Assassination Attempt, Draws Response from White House

Why The Supreme Court’s Landmark Elections Decision Is a ‘Game Changer’ for the Midterms and Beyond

Trump’s USA ‘Rededication to God’ Event in DC Will Occur Same Date as Continental Congress Took Similar Action in 1776

Trump weighs pulling US troops from Germany amid clash with chancellor over Iran war

GOP gubernatorial hopeful blasted by critics for ‘lying’ on stage about illegal immigrant hires

‘Sanctuary Politicians’ Release Illegal Alien Suspected of Killing Newlywed Couple – Then ICE Steps In

Trump EPA chief vows he won’t take ‘morality lessons’ from Dem senator after heated clash

Trump Isn’t the Problem: Dems Called John McCain and Mitt Romney Racists and Nazis, Too

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.