Less money being sent to Mexico

April 20, 2008

The flood of cash sent by immigrants in the United States to relatives in Mexico has dried up because of the economic slump and crackdown on illegal immigrants.

Michoacan State sends more immigrants to the United States than any other province, the Los Angeles Times reports. Now, local residents are staying put, while those already in the United States do not have the money to send or bring home and are afraid to make cross-border trips.

As a result, people are spending much less money locally. Eleazar Chavez Alaya said sales have dropped 50 percent at his family hardware store in Tejara because no one is buying bathroom fixtures or tools.

There is a lot of worry and very little work, said Chavez.

The Bank of Mexico reports that remittances from the United States were just slightly bigger in 2007 than the $24 million sent home in 2006.

http://politicom.moldova.org/stiri/eng/113312/