For the international organization, during 2020, Guatemala's economy showed resilience, since in the context of the crisis caused by the Covid-19 outbreak, the GDP contracted only 1.5%.
According to the International Monetary Fund, in a context of favorable specialization of production and exports, resilience of remittances, and unprecedented support from monetary and fiscal policies, the drop in Guatemalan production was minimal compared to that reported in other Central American countries.
Although forecasts at the start of the pandemic were pessimistic, during 2020 the country received remittances of $11.34 billion, an amount that is 8% higher than the $10.58 billion recorded in 2019.
According to the most recent report from the Bank of Guatemala, only in December, remittances amounted to $1.164 billion, 24% more than those reported in the same month in 2019, when the figure was $941 million.
Due to the spread of the covid-19, family remittances sent to the country fell in March, April and May; however, the trend was reversed in June, when a 9% year-on-year variation was registered.
The most recent data from the Bank of Guatemala show that in the first six months of 2020 the country received remittances for $4.88 billion, an amount that is 1% lower than the $4.92 billion registered in the same period in 2019.
During the first two months of 2020, family remittances sent to the country amounted to Ch$1,643 million, 19% more than reported for the same period in 2019.
Official figures from the Bank of Guatemala detail that in February 2020 the country received remittances of $808 million, an amount that exceeds by 17% the $690 million registered in the same month of 2019.
During January, the country received $425 million in family remittances, 6% more than in the same month in 2019.
Economic growth and employment in the United States are two determining variables in the income of family remittances, since their performance influences the economy of those who send remittances to Salvadoran households. In this sense, economic growth in the fourth quarter of the United States for 2019 was 2.1%, according to an official report.
During the first month of the year, family remittances sent to Guatemala registered a 22% year-on-year variation, a rise that exceeds the 8% increase registered in the same period in 2018.
According to the most recent figures from the Bank of Guatemala, in January 2020 the country received remittances of $834 million, an amount that exceeds by $46 million that registered in the same month of 2019.
Last year the country received $5.65 billion in family remittances, which is 5% more than the amount reported in 2018.
In 2019, the central zone of the country received 36.6% of total remittances, equivalent to $2,069.7 million, followed by the eastern zone with 32.1%, or $1,811 million.
Last year, family remittances sent to Guatemala totaled $10.508 million, 13% more than what was reported in 2018.
According to the latest figures from the Bank of Guatemala, in December 2019 the country received remittances of $941 million, an amount that exceeds by 12% the $843 million registered in the same month in 2018.
From January to November 2019, family remittances sent to Guatemala totaled $9,567 million, 13% more than what was reported in the same period in 2018.
According to the most recent figures from the Bank of Guatemala, in November 2019 the country received $819 million in remittances, 8% more than the $757 million recorded in the same month in 2018.
According to the Central Bank, the constructive activity and consumption spending that Guatemalans make with the money received from abroad will boost the economy by the end of 2019, and this expansive cycle could extend until 2020.
During this year residential and commercial construction, together with public investment, have affected activities such as manufacturing, mining and quarrying, private services and commerce, informed representatives of the Bank of Guatemala (Banguat).
Sanctioning anyone who transfers money through systems not authorized by the competent authority with an 8 to 15-year prison term is part of the bill that will be presented to the Assembly.
On November 12, the Cabinet Council approved the bill adding article 253-A to the Criminal Code, which will be presented to the National Assembly for discussion and subsequent approval.
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