DHAKA, Sept 7 — Bangladesh received US$957.9 million (RM2.99 billion) in remittances from workers overseas in August, up 2.4 percent from a year earlier, central bank data shows.

The income from more than 6 million workers overseas, a key source of foreign exchange for the cash-starved economy, hit US$10.97 billion in the 2009/10 fiscal year that ended in June, 13 per cent above the previous year.

The central bank expects remittances to reach US$14 billion this fiscal year as the global economy recovers from the downturn, although the number of Bangladeshis leaving for overseas jobs has decreased.

Bangladesh sent 202,000 workers abroad during the first half of 2010, the lowest in four years, government figures show.

Millions of Bangladeshis depend on money sent by relatives working overseas, mainly in the Middle East, Europe and the United States.

At the end of August the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose to US$10.99 billion from US$10.75 billion in July.

Expatriate incomes are the second-biggest source of foreign income after ready-made garments. — Reuters