Vietnam had a trade surplus of US$420 million in January, the State Bank of Vietnam, the country's central bank has said in a statement, quoting local customs authorities.
In the month, Vietnam exported US$3.72 billion and imported US$3.3 billion, the SBV said.
“Macroeconomic indicators are favorable, including low CPI, dropping lending rates, and the trade surplus figure a good indication for the domestic forex market,” the SBV noted.
The cross rate on the domestic inter-bank market in January was relatively stable, and the VND/USD rate quoted by commercial banks fluctuated VND17,478-VND17,484, the central bank added.
On contrary to the SBV’s just released figures, the statistics bureau estimated that Vietnam’s trade deficit in January narrowed to US$300 million in January, much higher than US$2.41 billion last year.
Traders said this is a very unusual move by the SBV after local banks have complained that they were facing difficulties raising dollars. On black markets, dollar, which tends to appreciate against the dong, was offered at VND17,850 on February 20, higher than VND17,610 Thursday while the VND/USD rate is quoted by the SBV at VND16,974, lower than VND16,977 Thursday.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has just signaled to allow the SBV to work on plans to widen forex trading band to boost exports and curb trade deficit.
Vietnam’s forex reserves were estimated at US$22 billion by end-November of 2008, equaling 12 weeks of imports, much lower than 17 weeks of imports in 2007, VietnamNet said. (
SBV, VietnamNet) VietnamNet)
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