Vietnam's public debt 12th most risky

Vietnam’s public debt has been ranked 12th in the world at risk of default, according to the Bank of America.

The ranking is based on the price of credit default swaps - derivatives that pay out if a borrower defaults. Government credit default swaps are a type of insurance against governments not paying back money owed. The more expensive the swap is, the higher the risk.

In the Bank of America list Vietnam has the most risk in ASEAN, with Indonesia ranked 13th, Malaysia 18th, Thailand 20th, and the Philippines 24th.

Earlier this month the Ministry of Finance said that public debt in 2014 stood at an estimated $110 billion; roughly the same as the World Bank’s calculations and representing $1,200 per person.

The total has gone from 54.5 per cent of GDP in 2013 to 59.6 per cent in 2014. Although it was to be kept from 27 to 28 per cent of GDP in the 2010 to 2014 period, domestic debt increase quickly from 23.1 per cent of GDP in 2010 to 31.7 per cent in 2014. Domestic capital has mostly been mobilized from government bonds.

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