According to Mr. Nguyen Duc Lenh, Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City Branch, as of the end of August 2024, total credit outstanding in Ho Chi Minh City exceeded VND 3.7 quadrillion, up 0.75% from the previous month, 4.68% higher than at the end of 2023, and a significant 11.28% year-on-year increase. Thus, after a slight dip in July 2024 (a decrease of 0.09%), credit growth rebounded in August 2024.
Foreign currency credit, which accounts for a relatively small proportion of total credit outstanding at around 3.6%, has been on a downward trend in recent months but turned a corner in August 2024, growing by 0.8%. Mr. Lenh attributed this development to the city’s import-export activities and favorable exchange rate movements. The stability of the exchange rate and the foreign exchange market has had a positive impact on business operations, particularly in the realm of import and export activities.
Mr. Lenh further highlighted that the focus of banking credit activities in the region remains on supporting businesses. Debt restructuring to maintain the debt group as per Circular No. 02 and Circular No. 06 continues to be implemented to alleviate challenges faced by enterprises, reduce loan repayment pressure, sustain production, and generate cash flow for development. Thus far, nearly 43,000 customers and businesses have benefited from debt restructuring, with total outstanding debt reaching VND 41,498 billion. Notably, the disbursement of preferential credit packages through the bank-business connection program has been substantial, with VND 425,659 billion disbursed in the first eight months, equivalent to 83.3% of the credit package registered at the beginning of the year. This has supported 146,906 customers through various measures such as interest rate reductions, debt restructuring to maintain the debt group, preferential interest rate loans, and import-export loans.
Thirdly, lending to five key sectors that drive economic growth, including import-export, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), agriculture and rural areas, supporting industries, and high-tech enterprises, maintained positive growth in the first eight months of the year. As of now, total outstanding loans to these five sectors stand at VND 1,688 trillion, reflecting a 0.7% increase compared to July 2024. Notably, loans to SMEs continue to account for a significant proportion, making up 82% of the total outstanding credit in these five sectors in the region.
Additionally, when analyzing market share and the growth of credit institutions (state-owned commercial banks, joint-stock commercial banks, joint-venture banks, foreign banks, and finance companies) and relating it to the credit growth of each institution and the entire system, it is evident that the credit outstanding of joint-stock commercial banks and state-owned commercial banks still accounts for a large proportion of the total credit outstanding in the region and has achieved a higher growth rate than other groups. This will be a crucial factor in contributing to credit growth in the final months of the year, as credit institutions in this group are granted increased credit growth limits, enabling them to meet the capital needs of production, commercial, and service business activities.
AEON Group Unveils the Largest Shopping Center in Central Vietnam
This morning, September 16, AEON Group’s seventh shopping center in Vietnam was officially opened to the public.
Opening of the Road Connecting Long Phuoc Island to Thu Duc City
The newly completed Long Phuoc Road in Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City, opened to traffic this morning, September 12th. This vital road link connects Long Dai Bridge and provides a seamless route between Long Binh and Long Phuoc wards. With this new infrastructure in place, Thu Duc City now turns its attention to future plans for connectivity, including potential links to Ho Chi Minh City’s Ring Road 3 and the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway.
