COVID-19 and remittances to Mexican states

Abstract

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and its negative effect on economic activity, a decrease in remittances was expected. However, on the contrary, remittances have increased in countries like Mexico. Using a fixed-effect model with information at the state level, this study finds evidence that the increase in COVID-19 cases was associated with a higher level of remittances to Mexican states, allowing some degree of insurance against the pandemic. However, remittances did not respond to the decrease in employment caused by the pandemic in local economies. A portion of the observed increases in remittances during the pandemic can be explained by factors at the national level.