Remittances that Mexicans living in the United States sent home to their families totaled a record US13.8 billion from January to October this year, a sum that is 23.3 percent higher than for the same period in 2003. The Bank of Mexico said that in October remittances reached US1.4 billion, which was 24.5 percent more than remittances sent during the same month last year.
This massive transferral of dollars was the result of 42.1 million transactions worth an average US327 each.
By the end of 2004, experts calculate that total remittances will add up to more than US15 billion, compared with the total US13.4 billion last year.
2003 was the first year that the sum of remittances from the U.S. was greater than direct foreign investments in Mexico, thus becoming its second greatest source of foreign currency after revenues from oil exports.
Remittances are sent principally to the central and western states Michoacan, Guanajuato, Zacatecas and Jalisco where the greatest number of migrants originate.
According to various analyses, at least 15.5 million Mexicans live in the United States, of which some 4.5 million are undocumented.
Last month, officials at the World Bank said Mexico and the United States have become a model for other countries by transferring money each year through formal financial institutions that shield the funds from criminal influences.
