KARACHI, June 10: Remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis have crossed the $10 billion-mark for the first time in the country’s history.

The overseas Pakistanis remitted $10,096.40m in the first 11 months (July-May) of 2010-11, showing an increase of $2,031.94m or 25.20pc when compared with $8,064.46m received over the same period of the last fiscal year.

Overseas Pakistanis remitted over $1bn for the third consecutive month of this fiscal year. They remitted an amount of $1052.90m, $1,030.43m and $1,049.79m in March, April and May 2011, respectively.

The remittances by overseas Pakistanis in May 2011 were up by 38.52pc or $291.93m when compared with $757.86m received in the same month last year.

Overseas Pakistani workers had remitted an amount of nearly $8.906bn in the last fiscal 2009-10.

The inflow of remittances during July-May, 2011 period from Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries amounted to $2,378.52m, $2,327.70m, $1,864.03m, $1,184.83m, $1,093.47m and $320.93m, respectively, as compared to $1,718.31m, $1,842.13m, $1,606.36m, $1,132.03m, $793.91m and $229.74m, respectively, in the July-May, 2010 period.

Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during the eleven months of the current fiscal year amounted to $926.86m as against $740.96m in the same period of last year.

The monthly average remittances for July-May 2011, period come out to $917.85m as compared to $733.13m during the same corresponding period of the last fiscal year, registering an increase of 25.20pc.

During last month, that is, May 2011, remittances from Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman), UK and EU countries amounted to $292.72m, $236.37m, $186.15m, $121.34m, $102.55m and $30.16m, respectively, as compared to $192.41m, $178.96m, $144.56m, $99.03m, $59.32m and $19.52m, respectively, in May 2010.

Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during May 2011 amounted to $80.5m compared with $64.06m in the same month last year.—APP