Free-market USD prices soar in Vietnam

Prices of the U.S. dollar on Vietnam’s black market increased markedly on Saturday while those at commercial banks moved sideways.

Hanoi-based gold stores quoted the greenback at VND25,230-25,330 a dollar for bids and asks, up VND120 on both sides from Friday.

The U.S. dollar has risen by a total of nearly VND300 on the free market over the past three days, or 1.2%. However, compared to the peak set in late June, the greenback is still VND700 cheaper.

Meanwhile, the dollar slid at commercial banks. State-controlled Vietcombank, the largest forex trader in the country, offered the currency at VND24,390-24,760 for buying and selling, down VND40 on both sides from a day earlier.

Similarly, private Techcombank quoted the dollar at VND2,440-24,790, down VND10 and up VND5 from Friday, respectively. The price at BIDV stood at VND24,430-24,770 on Friday, down VND20 from Thursday.

Compared to the start of this year, USD prices at commercial banks have risen around VND300 a dollar, representing a 1.2% rise, narrowing considerably from a 4.9% increase at the peak in May.

Researchers with Singapore-based United Overseas Bank (UOB) earlier this week noted that the Vietnamese dong posted the largest quarterly gain on record dating back to 1993, rebounding 3.2% to VND24,630 a dollar.

They said expectations of stable monetary policy from the Vietnamese central bank with a focus on boosting credit growth also supported the VND.

The researchers updated their USD/VND forecasts at 24,500 in Q4/2024, 24,300 in Q1/2025, 24,100 in Q2/2025, and 23,900 in Q3/2025.

The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the strength of the greenback, was trading 0.1% lower at 100.42 at the time of writing. The index has dropped from a five-day high of 101.16 set on Monday.