Remittances and Vulnerability in Developing Countries

Author/Editor:

Giulia Bettin ; Andrea F Presbitero ; Nikola Spatafora

Publication Date:

January 27, 2014

Electronic Access:

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Disclaimer: This Working Paper should not be reported as representing the views of the IMF.The views expressed in this Working Paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the IMF or IMF policy. Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to further debate

Summary:

This paper examines how international remittances are affected by structural characteristics, macroeconomic conditions, and adverse shocks in both source and recipient economies. We exploit a novel, rich panel data set, covering bilateral remittances from 103 Italian provinces to 107 developing countries over the period 2005-2011. We find that remittances are negatively correlated with the business cycle in recipient countries, and increase in response to adverse exogenous shocks, such as natural disasters or large declines in the terms of trade. Remittances are positively correlated with economic conditions in the source province. Nevertheless, in the presence of similar negative shocks to both source and recipient economies, remittances remain counter-cyclical with respect to the recipient country.

Series:

Working Paper No. 2014/013

Subject:

English

Publication Date:

January 27, 2014

ISBN/ISSN:

9781484385081/1018-5941

Stock No:

WPIEA2014013

Pages:

33

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