The remittances remain an important source of financing for domestic households. However, the Moldovan economy has been slightly decoupled from remittances, considers economic expert Alexandru Fala.

Asked by IPN to comment on the National Bank’s data showing that the remittances transferred from abroad to private individuals in Moldova have declined, the expert said he intuited that the remittances will decrease and the unfavorable dynamics of the Russian economy is a relevant argument.

“On the other hand, we see economic growth even if remittances decline. A first hypothesis is that apart from remittances, there are particular forces in the economy that stimulate it,” said Alexandru Fala.

According to an analysis published by the central bank, US$93.97 million was transferred to Moldovans through licensed banks last December, a decrease of 3.2% on December 2015.

Alexandru Fala said the National Bank generally manages to detect the tendencies related to the evolution of remittances, but there are also unofficial sources through which remittances reach Moldova and these are not taken into account.