KUWAIT CITY, Nov 18: Official data released by the Central Bank of the Philippines shows that remittances from Filipino workers in Kuwait grew by 4.71% during the first nine months of this year, reaching USD 453.04 million. This marks an increase from the USD 432.7 million recorded during the same period in 2024.

According to the report, overall remittances from Filipino workers across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries also saw a notable rise. Transfers from the six GCC states climbed by 6.03% between January and September 2025, amounting to approximately USD 4.5 billion, compared with USD 4.25 billion during the first nine months of 2024.

Data obtained from Mubasher Info indicates that remittances from GCC countries accounted for 96.67% of total remittances coming from the wider Middle East region, which reached USD 4.66 billion. The GCC also represented a significant portion—42.92%—of all remittances sent from Asia during the same period, totaling USD 10.49 billion.

Globally, remittances from Filipino workers reached USD 26.03 billion from January to September 2025, up from USD 25.23 billion in the corresponding period last year. Transfers from GCC countries made up 17.30% of this global total.

Among GCC nations, the United Arab Emirates recorded the highest annual growth rate at 8.09%, while Oman saw the lowest increase at 1.85%. Saudi Arabia remained the largest source of remittances, contributing around USD 1.66 billion, followed by the UAE at USD 1.16 billion. Bahrain registered the smallest inflows at USD 201.20 million during the first nine months of the year.