Buoyed by a decline in the value of rupee, Indian expats in Kuwait are turning all stops to send maximum remittances back home. The remittances by Indian expats there have increased substantially in last three weeks, media reports said.
While the rupee jumped by 12 per cent last year, the surge in oil prices and other factors led to its decline by 8.2 per cent in 2008. A Kuwaiti Dinar (KD), which fetched Rs 143.5 in January, is now pegged at Rs 162.
Titus E D, the director and general manager of Bahrain Exchange Company (BEC), said the current situation presented an opportune time for Indian expatriates."This is a win-win situation and NRIs should try to capitalise by remitting maximum money. The depreciation of rupee would not last for long. By the year end, I believe, the currency would rise against the dollar due to poor showing by the greenback," he told ’Arab Times’.
A substantial number of Indians are remitting their money through the door-to-door medium which is an efficient service, Titus said.A contract worker from Bihar said he remitted Rs 50,000 to his bank account in India recently.
"I borrowed KD 100 from friends since I did not want to miss out on this golden opportunity. Thanks to the weak rupee, the purchasing power of my family back home has increased substantially. I am planning to borrow more money to be sent home," he added. Another NRI worker, Mohammad Iqbal, said he had saved around KD 350 for his upcoming vacation and had already sent the entire amount to his bank account in Mumbai to capitalise on the weak rupee.
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