Deputy Prime Minister Pays New Year Visit to SBV

Senior Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung, on behalf of the Government, paid a visit to the Head Office of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) today on the occasion of the Lunar New Year of the Buffalo. Governor Nguyen Van Giau, members of the Management Board and many staff were on hand to welcome the Senior Deputy Prime Minister.

Talking to the SBV staff present at the welcome meeting, the Senior Deputy Prime Minister commended the SBV for making a big contribution to successfully curtailing inflation in 2008. He said that the banking system had closely monitored the economic situation and shown its responsibility for sharing the burden of difficulties with the whole nation when the economy moved into the period of deflation. Specifically, the SBV reduced the base interest rate and managed the exchange rate in a flexible manner with the aim of improving business and production, maintaining proper economic growth and ensuring safe and sound banking operations.

Mr. Nguyen Sinh Hung expressed his belief that the banking sector would continue to promote the obtained achievements, and make the best efforts and contribution to successfully preventing the current economic downturn by September, 2009, while maintaining economic growth and securing social protection by the means of effectively managing the monetary policy, especially the interest and exchange rates so as to stabilize the value of the domestic currency.

In his reply, Governor Nguyen Van Giau expressed his sincere thanks to the Government and the Senior Deputy Prime Minister. He assured the visiting Government leader that the banking system would be determined to fulfill all the tasks assigned by the Government. The Governor also recalled the remarkable achievements of the whole banking system in 2008.

It is notable that the SBV Governor, on the final day of the last lunar year, signed a decision on reducing the base interest rate by 1.5 percentage points down to 7% p.a. starting on February 1st. The Governor also instructed credit institutions to decisively implement Decision No.131/QD-NHNN of the Prime Minister dated January 23, 2009 on assisting and supporting the business and productive corporate and individual borrowers in terms of interest rates in the context of the global financial crisis.

Viet Huong - Diem Hang

sbv

>   Taleb says nationalize banks, you can’t trust them  (30/01/2009)

>   Banking cooperation effective in fighting financial crisis (28/01/2009)

>   Will domestic banks be swallowed by foreign bankers? (26/01/2009)

>   Bank interest rates promote business operations (25/01/2009)

>   VDB to assure SME bank loans (24/01/2009)

>   Weekly information of banking activities (from January 15 to January 21, 2009) (24/01/2009)

>   SBV cuts base interest rate (23/01/2009)

>   $2 bank notes hunted for Tet presents (23/01/2009)

>   SBV’s Governor: “I have been bearing big pressure” (23/01/2009)

>   Import tax on petrol reduced by 5 percent (23/01/2009)