SBV Governor stresses importance of proactive, flexible response to changes

Hanoi (VNA) – Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Nguyen Thi Hong has underlined the need for proactive and flexible response to changes to control inflation and stabilise the macro-economy while talking about some issues mentioned by legislators on October 28.

Speaking at the ongoing fourth session of the 15th National Assembly (NA), she said the situation this year has witnessed considerable changes and many more difficulties compared to the Government’s forecast made in late 2021.

Inflation is soaring around the world, with more than 80 countries recording inflation of at least double digits. The US Federal Reserve (FED) has hiked interest rates and is expected to maintain them high. The strong appreciation of the US dollar has led to the depreciation of many other currencies, some of which have lost about 30% of their value. The foreign exchange reserves of many countries have fallen sharply. All such developments have caused great difficulties for central banks in the world, according to Hong.

In Vietnam, recent developments in the corporate bond, real estate, and stock markets have substantially affected monetary and banking activities. Meanwhile, the monetary policy is tasked with many duties to achieve multiple targets. Even when global interest rates have been surging, the SBV was still assigned to reduce the domestic rates by 0.5 - 1% in 2022 and 2023, which is a highly tough task in the current context, she noted.

The Governor emphasised that in the first nine months of 2022, the SBV closely monitored macro-economic changes and took flexible and concerted actions depending on each point of time, thus helping keep the nine-month inflation at 2.73% and the whole-year figure possibly at under 4%, which is much lower than in other countries in the region and the world and also a contributor to this year’s economic growth.

She said Vietnam has been extensively and intensively integrating into the world while the openness of its economy is great, so changes in the global market will have considerable and inevitable impacts on the country’s monetary and forex markets.

Given this, Vietnam should be ready to respond to all changes, Hong went on, adding that it is important to make assessment frequently to identify focuses and objectives for each period of time.

She highlighted the consistent target of controlling inflation, stabilising the macro-economy, and guaranteeing the banking system’s safety to realise socio-economic development goals./.