State Bank of Vietnam Deputy Governor Dao Minh Tu said that the central bank will issue a document relating to a credit package of VND 120,000 billion for social housing and worker housing at the beginning of April 2023.
Since the beginning of March 2023, commercial banks have reduced deposit interest rates which have been contrary to forecasts made by many domestic and foreign investment organizations.
Commercial banks have agreed to lower deposit interest rates by about 0.5 percent starting from March 6, while State-owned banks will only reduce their rates by 0.2 percent because they are already at the lowest level in the market.
According to the State Bank (SBV)’s, the loan amount from the 2-percent interest rate support package reached nearly VND30 trillion (US$1,268,366) and the amount of interest rate support neared VND78 billion by the end of November 2022.
Currently, 16 commercial banks have guaranteed to reduce the interest rate for loans from 0.5 percent point to three percent per year with a total amount of around VND3,500 billion (US$148 million) to support enterprises.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), on December 15, announced the US dollar buying price at VND23,450 per dollar after not listing the buying price for about three months. It shows that the SBV has started to buy foreign currencies for intervention and inject the Vietnamese dong into the market because foreign currency liquidity has become less tense.
From the beginning of 2023, commercial banks will increase the interest rate from 4.8 percent a year to five percent per year applying for loans used for purchasing, and leasing social housing projects and commercial ones having an area of under 70 square meters and VND15 million (US$634) per square meter following a new decision of State Bank.
Many commercial banks are prepared to inject more than VND200,000 billion worth of cash into markets after the State Bank of Vietnam approved the expansion of the credit room.
The US dollar selling prices at commercial banks in the morning fell below VND24,000 per dollar although the reference exchange rate of the State Bank of Vietnam increased for a second consecutive session.
Many commercial banks said that in the past time, they have managed to provide capital with reduced lending interest rates for some businesses during the peak season in business at the end of the year.
Not only did the US dollar exchange rates at commercial banks cool down, but the exchange rate on the free market also fell below VND25,000 per dollar.
While a few banks announced cutting lending interest rates to support enterprises to access good capital for production and business activities at the end of the year, in the savings market, deposit interest rates remain hot every day.
The recent sharp increase in deposit interest rates has pulled lending interest rates up by 3-4 percent per annum over the same period last year. In the face of highly increasing pressure on the USD/VND exchange rate, deposit interest rates have not cooled down yet, so the pressure on lending interest rates in the peak months of the year is still huge.
Bank stocks are sold out strongly, despite good business results, due to pressure of corporate bonds nearing maturity. Many stocks even fell to the lowest range in last two years as investors feared cash flow risks.
