Guatemala: Remittances fall in May amid elevated unemployment in the U.S.
Remittances from workers abroad fell 14.2% year-on-year in May, up from April’s 20.2% drop. Remittances totaled USD 836.8 million (May 2019: USD 974.5 million; April 2020: USD 690.8 million). On a 12-month rolling basis, moreover, growth in remittances eased to 6.6% from 9.9% in the prior month.
Remittances are a key source of income for Guatemalan families and tend to follow employment trends in the United States, where the majority of remittance originate from. Given weaker remittances in the first two months of the second quarter, household spending is likely to take a hit in the quarter.