Growing demand is expected to significantly boost commercial banks' credit for January, based on information from banks in the country's two largest cities Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The HCM City Statistics Office reported that the city's lending in January has risen by 11 percent, against the same period last year, and is up 1.9 percent from last month to 1,057 trillion VND (49.39 billion USD).

During this month, lending for the Vietnamese dong contributed to a growth of 9.9 percent against the same period last year, while lending in US dollars increased by 16.9 percent.

Medium and long-term outstanding loans accounted for more than a half of the city's total loans, up 2.3 percent from the same period last year.

Deposits at commercial banks in HCM City in January also grew by 10.5 percent against the same period last year and are up 0.3 percent month-on-month to 1,293.7 trillion VND (60.45 billion USD).

Deposits in US dollars accounted for 15.6 percent of the city's total deposits, up 7.6 percent against the same period last year, while deposits for dong jumped 11 percent.

The Hanoi Statistics Office also reported that the city's deposits in January grew by 1.1 percent month-on-month to 1,204 trillion VND (56.26 billion USD), while the city's lending rose by 0.7 percent to 1,017 trillion VND (47.52 billion USD).-VNA