Remittances from Mexican migrants in the United States during the time of COVID-19

Authors

  • Rodolfo García Zamora Academic Unit of Development Studies, Autonomous University of Zacatecas. Zacatecas, Mexico
  • Selene Gaspar Olvera Academic Unit of Development Studies, Autonomous University of Zacatecas; part of the Information System Project on Migration and Development (SIMDE-UAZ), Mexico

Keywords:

Mexican migrants, remittances, COVID-19, unemployment, economic recovery

Abstract

Following the Great Recession of 2007-2009 in the United States, Mexican migrants’ remittances began to grow steadily in 2014 until they reached a historical level of US$36 billion in 2019. This figure was at US$4 billion in March 2020 when Mexico had been suffering the effects of COVID-19 for one month. In April, remittances from Mexican migrants in the United States dropped 28%, as their unemployment rate reached 17%. Recuperating remittance levels will depend on economic recovery policies in the United States, and on reducing unemployment for Mexican migrants in the sectors where they have the biggest presence.

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Published

2020-05-09

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2020)

Section

Articles