Commercial banks have raised interest rates for dong deposits by 0.1-0.3 percentage points in a move to mobilize more funds in case an economic recovery materializes soon.
The average dong deposit interest rate of state-owned banks is staying at 7.07 per cent a year for three-month terms; 7.56 per cent a year for 12-month terms while the rates are slightly higher, 7.48 per cent a year for three-month terms and 7.9 per cent a year for 12-month terms at joint stock ones.
HCM City-based Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) raised its 24-month dong deposit interest rate to 8.3 per cent per annum. Southern Bank, 10 per cent owned by the Singapore-based United Overseas Bank, increased interest by 0.01-0.1 percentage point for various terms on April 24.
Housing Development Bank, An Binh Joint Stock Commercial Bank (ABBank), Sacombank, and others have hiked rates as high as 9 per cent since the beginning of this month.
Commercial lenders have also increased gold mobilization interest rate with the highest rate of 4 per cent per annum recorded by Viet A Bank. Asian Commercial Bank (ACB) also increased the gold savings interest rate by 0.7-1.1 percentage point per annum for all terms.
Analysts said raising deposits interest rates is not a preferred solution for banks because the lending interest rates are being barred by the ceiling rate of 10.5 per cent a year.
Increasing deposit interest rates means narrowing difference between deposit and lending interest rates, which directly impacts profits of banks, they explained.
In theory, in order to stimulate consumer demand as well as investment demand, interest rates should be further lower. However, in fact, at present when the market is short of capital, the managing body finds it hard to realize its wish on reducing the basic interest rate.
Not reducing the basic interest rate by this time is appreciated by many banks, analysts added. (Vietnam Economic Times)
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