Remittances this year by Filipino expatriates would at least remain unchanged despite concerns of a contraction, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Wednesday.

"Remittances for the full year 2009 are expected to exhibit flat growth even with the mounting concerns about the effects of the recessionary conditions in the global economy," the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said in report posted Wednesday on its Web site. The central bank said strong labor demand in certain countries including Canada, Australia, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar would sustain remittances from abroad.

"With the continued growth in remittances in the first four months of 2009, the projected flat growth is turning out to be relatively conservative," said the central bank, suggesting remittance growth may be possible.

Total remittances from January-April were $5.50 billion, up 2.6 percent from $5.36 billion previously.

According to the central bank, projections of a decline may be due to an expected contraction in remittances from the US. Both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund predict remittances this year could decline 4 percent. (Dow Jones)