Vietnam’s five-month credit growth hits only 3.17%

Credit in the Vietnamese economy reached over VND12,300 trillion ($523.8 billion) in the first five months of this year, an increase of only 3.17% from the end of 2022, according to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

"At state-controlled commercial banks, which account for about 44% of the market share, credit growth reached only 35% of the level assigned by the central bank," SBV Deputy Governor of Pham Thanh Ha told a monthly government press conference on Saturday.

The figure at joint stock commercial banks, that also make up 44%, reached only half of the target.

"There is still a lot of room for credit growth over the rest of the year," Ha stressed, noting that the same period last year saw credit growth of approximately 8% year-on-year, while the target set for 2022 by the central bank was 14%.

“This year’s target is 14-15%, so five-month credit growth of just 3.17% is very low, showing that capital absorption in the economy is much weaker than last year,” he said.

The SBV representative attributed low credit growth to shrinking loan demand for production and manufacturing as businesses are facing difficulties due to a lack of orders.

Some small and medium-sized enterprises are in weak financial positions with no way out, and are unable to to meet banks’ creddit requirements, he said, adding that demand for real estate has also decreased as many projects have been delayed due to legal problems.

According to Ha, the SBV has proposed a number of solutions to boost credit growth, including directing credit institutions and banks to reduce lending interest rates.

Interest rates have fallen following a number of moves made by the SBV from March to May, he said, citing recent data showing that the average lending interest rate for new loans is currently around 9.07%, down 0.9% from the end of last year.

“The central bank believes that interest rates are falling and will continue on a downward trend,” he stated.

For existing outstanding loans, the SBV issued Circular 02 allowing credit institutions and foreign bank branches to reschedule debt repayment deadlines and keep debt categories unchanged to support struggling customers, Ha said.

The central bank has also requested banks and credit institutions to offer new loans to qualified customers, he added.

In addition to the above-mentioned solutions, the SBV representative stressed the importance of measures to increase demand in the economy.

“Ministries and agencies need to continue to step up policies to support enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones; remove difficulties for businesses; and improve their financial capacity and credit access,” he noted.

On May 25, the SBV lowered the ceiling interest rates on dong-denominated deposits by another 0.5 percentage points for terms below six months to support the country’s economic growth.

Under the central bank’s decision, deposit interest caps were lowered from 5.5% to 5% per year for terms from one month to below six months. The maximum interest rate for demand deposits and deposits of less than one month remains at 0.5% per year.

Meanwhile, the ceiling rate for deposits in Vietnamese dong at people's credit funds and microfinance institutions was cut from 6% to 5.5% per year.

The rate for deposits of six months or more can be set by banks on the basis of market capital supply and demand.