VINACHEM

The U.S. dollar has continued edging up against the Vietnamese dong currency on April 15, reaching the ceiling set by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) at some banks.

The SBV on April 15 quoted the central reference forex rate at VND24,096, up by VND14 from the previous weekend.

Commercial banks are allowed to trade the greenback at between VND22,892 to VND25,300 per dollar, within a trading band of 5% on either side of the SBV-quoted exchange rate.

Currently, commercial banks have raised their U.S. dollar selling prices close to the permissible ceiling.

Vietcombank was buying the dollar at VND24,900 and selling at VND25,270, up by VND90 over the last weekend.

At BIDV, the exchange rate is capped at VND24,960 and VND25,270 for buying and selling, respectively, up by VND125 versus last weekend.

Eximbank raised its buying rate to VND24,900, and its selling rate to VND25,300, an increase of VND80 to VND90 over the last weekend.

This marks the highest rate set by commercial banks to date. The exchange rates between Vietnamese dong and the dollar at banks have surged by roughly VND850 since the beginning of the year, or a 3.4% increase.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the value of the U.S. dollar against a basket of other currencies used by U.S. trade partners, hovers around 105.17.

A recent report made by RongViet Securities Corporation (RongViet) said that the U.S. dollar will maintain its current strength against the Vietnamese dong until the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) cuts interest rates.

Source: Saigon Times