Foreign currency credit in HCMC this year has slumped a staggering 3.68% against the end of last year, according to the HCMC branch of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV). Foreign currency credit in the city’s banking system shrank 8.78% last year. The fall in January-March foreign currency credit has pushed the city’s credit growth down to a mere 0.26% as total outstanding loans in Vietnam dong have... 

Banks are continuing to sit on a pile cash with few firms ready to talk business. The State Bank yesterday, March 21, 2013 revealed that by the end of February 2013, mobilised capital increased by 2 per cent compared to the end of 2012, double the growth of 2012’s first two months, with VND mobilisation growth higher than foreign currencies. However, credit growth continued to be negative in 2013’s... 

Under the draft of the new Ordinance on Foreign Exchange, individual residents can borrow money from foreign sources, pay debts and must be responsible for the borrowing in accordance with the regulations to be drawn up by the government. If the draft ordinance is approved, Vietnamese individuals would be able to take initiative in borrowing foreign currencies from foreign sources for their personal... 

A big amount of foreign currencies has been sold by people recently since they, after weighing pros and cons, decided that it would be better to keep dong than dollars. The State Bank of Vietnam has never before bought foreign currencies so continually and in such a big quantities. The foreign currency reserves have reportedly reached the highest peak so far. Instead of keeping foreign currencies... 

Experts believe that the total overseas remittance to Vietnam may reach 10 billion dollars this year. Markets expanded Overseas remittance, or kieu hoi in Vietnamese language, is understood as the money remitted by overseas Vietnamese people to their relatives in Vietnam. This is considered a very important source of foreign currency which can be mobilized to use for the economic development. In the... 

The demand for foreign currency loans for the year-end shopping season among enterprises has not risen much although the first month of the final quarter has passed. The inter-bank exchange rate has been stable at VND20,828 per dollar since the year’s beginning. Prices of the greenback quoted at banks have increased slightly but have not reached the ceiling of VND21,036. The foreign exchange market... 

Businesses have demanded more loans in foreign currencies to prepare for the year-end production season. Meanwhile, banks have reported the sharp falls in the capital mobilized. In principle, businesses would prefer borrowing capital in foreign currencies to Vietnam dong in order to enjoy the lower interest rates, if the dong/dollar exchange rate is stabilized. It’s now the right time for businesses... 

Banks are becoming net purchasers of  foreign currencies, creating a good base for the forex market despite exporters’ increased demand for foreign currencies at the year-end. Based on State Bank data, in the final week of September and the first week of October, the exchange rate moved slightly upward as credit institutions actively bought foreign currencies to meet customers’ demand. At the... 

Banks are afraid of forex rate volatility at the end of this year, as there has been more pressure on the forex rate albeit mildly. “The forex rate will fluctuate, but not as much as in the previous years, only by 1-1.5% against late 2011,” predicted Pham Hong Hai, deputy general director of HSBC Vietnam. Sharing this view, a senior executive from Vietcombank told the Daily: “We are worried... 

Interest rates in the interbank market have dipped to the lowest levels in more than three years and local banks are facing excessive money supply on faltering credit demand. Overnight interbank rates on Wednesday hovered in the range of 3-4% a year for one night to one-week terms, easing against previous days. Meanwhile, the rates for terms of two weeks to one month fluctuated between 4% and 7%. Bank...