|
Access to listed prices resumes
Commercial banks have resumed the sale of US dollars at listed prices to a number of businesses after several weeks of discrepancy between the listed and selling prices.
Over the past few weeks, businesses said they were forced to buy dollars at prices higher than those listed by commercial banks. Clients also had to pay high additional fees, such as consulting fees, to purchase greenbacks. This was due to intense US dollar trading on market exchanges resulting from high import demands, speculation and inflation concerns.
To address the issue, the State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) on June 27 stipulated that commercial banks must sell dollars to several kinds of businesses at listed prices to help ensure smooth performance and production. According to SBV regulations, commercial banks have to give priority to importers of necessities like petrol and pharmaceuticals; exporters of agricultural and fisheries products; and other export producers.
These businesses have so far affirmed that they could afford to purchase dollars at commercial banks at listed prices.
Director of Petrolimex’s financial division, Nguyen Ba Tung, said his company could buy dollars from commercial banks at listed prices, adding that it helped his company stabilise business performance.
It was the same with Vinatex’s Garment and Textile Ex-Import Company, according to its general director, Pham Nguyen Hanh.
Deputy general director of Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB), Nguyen Thanh Toai, said his bank had strictly implemented SBV regulations to sell dollars to prioritised businesses at listed prices.
However, non-prioritised businesses are having trouble accessing the dollar at listed prices given the still limited supply of greenbacks among banks.
Commercial banks have reported that the imbalance between supply and demand of US dollars in the market has partly improved over the past week.
Deputy general director of the Sai Gon–Ha Noi Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SHB), Bui Tin Nghi, estimated that dollar supply sources of commercial banks were increasing as commercial banks had to cut interbank interest rates on dollar loans. The interbank interest rate for dollar loans fell from the previous 5-6 per cent to 4-5 per cent.
Industry insiders attributed the relief on the currency market to SBV’s decision to double the daily trading band for the US$/VND exchange rate to +/-2 per cent against the interbank rate on June 27.
Director of Agribank’s transaction department, Nguyen Tien Dong, said the widening of the daily trading band at this moment was necessary to stabilise the foreign exchange market.
Before the widening, both enterprises and individuals were stockpiling dollars and refusing to sell greenbacks despite the high exchange rate of VND19,000/US$ given by commercial banks.
VNN
|
