The BBC reports on some of Asias economies and their currency trends recently. "Jennifer Pak meets Filipino maids who are finding that they can send less back home Capital flows into Asia have pushed up the Philippine peso against the US dollar and one of the groups feeling the pinch the most is overseas workers. Domestic helpers in Hong Kong may earn less than half of the average salary in the Chinese territory, but they are able to boost local consumption and support their families back in the Philippines. Myrna Nejar is one of the 159,000 Filipino maids in Hong Kong feeling the pressure. The wage she earns supports her daughter, granddaughter and elderly mother back in the Philippines. Just before the global financial crisis hit in 2008, Ms Nejar sent three-quarters of her salary back home. Since the local currency is pegged to the US dollar it amounted to roughly 16,700 Philippine pesos. But after successive rounds of quantitative easing by the US Federal Reserve, the US dollar has weakened and investment flowing into the Philippines has diluted the value of Ms Nejar's wage. She is now sending roughly 20% less Philippine pesos back home. It's a big adjustment for her 79-year-old mother Sophia Nejar. "I have to budget very carefully now. I eat less meat so that I can still buy my medicine and milk," she tells the BBC through an internet-based video call from her home in the Philippine province of Antique. Filipino maids try to find ways to send home the same amount of Philippine peso as before. Many resort to borrowing. Others cut back on their own spending in Hong Kong on food and clothing. The sacrifices made by domestic helpers worked. Last year, they were among the millions of overseas Filipinos who sent a record $21bn to the Philippines. It has moved families out of slums and helped them join the emerging middle class. For many domestic helpers in Hong Kong though, it's a struggle to keep up the momentum." http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23140774
