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Government curbs unofficial FX trade
The government has asked authorities including the police to help regulate foreign exchange transactions as part of efforts to reduce dollarization in the economy and control dollar rates in the black market.
“Gold shops that trade the dollar at rates different from the central bank’s and shops that sell motorcycles and cars and property transactions denominated in the dollar have caused great damage to consumers,” the government said in a report Monday.
The report quoted Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung as asking the police and city governments in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to step up surveillance and crack down on unregulated forex trading and advertising and selling of products in foreign currencies, a common occurrence in Vietnam.
The central bank has tried to regulate such illegal dealings but without much success.
The dollar has been weakening on unofficial markets in the past month on worries that weak exports and declining foreign investment would weigh on the economy, dealers said.
The dong is legally allowed to trade within a band that spans 5 percent on either side of the reference rate.
Last month the central bank said foreign exchange reserves remained stable at more than US$20 billion and banks had ample dollar funds.
thanhnien, reuters
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