The explosion in e-commerce has sent demand for logistics, especially transportation, through the roof.

Analysts have recently been bombarded with a question by investors: will bank shares continue to be attractive this year?

Last August Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc issued Decision No.986/QĐ-TTg on the Development Strategy of the Banking Sector.

Last month, property developer Vingroup unveiled plans to sell 20 million non-convertible bonds at VNĐ100,000 (US$4.39) each in two phases without any covered warrants or guaranteed assets.

On the first day of the new year the Government issued Resolution No 01/NQ-CP/2019 for the robust development of the securities market, especially the derivatives segment.

On December 11 the State Bank of Việt Nam reduced the value of the đồng against the US dollar by VNĐ9 from the previous day to VNĐ22,775 (US$1).

In the first nine months of the year, the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Việt Nam (Vietcombank)’s pre-tax profit exceeded the full-year 2017 figure and closed in on the year’s target.

Analysts believe banking credit growth will ease off next year, but since lending activities will mainly be focused on the economy, growth will not be affected.

The State Bank of Việt Nam (SBV) withdrew a total VNĐ18.87 trillion (nearly US$829 million) from the market in the week of November 26-31.

In the third quarter of this year Techcombank decided to pay stock dividends for 2017 to its shareholders at a ratio of two shares for each share held.

Chu Anh Tuấn, deputy general director of property developer Hà Đô Group, said recently his company expects consolidated profit after tax to be VNĐ700 billion (over US$30.43 million) this year.

In recent days, buyers have been accounting for 80 per cent of all customers at Bảo Tín Minh Châu Jewellery and Gemstone Company, one of Việt Nam’s biggest gold trading companies.

A report from the Hồ Chí Minh Securities Company shows that bank interest rates have risen by 0.46 percentage points for short-term loans since the end of last year to 7-9 per cent and to 9-12.5 per cent for medium- and long-term loans.

The State Bank of Việt Nam has shown it is determined to continue with a tight monetary policy for the rest of the year with its decision to refuse to increase bank’s credit limits to constrain inflation and strictly control lending to high-risk sectors.   

The HCM City Real Estate Association has recently proposed that the central bank should allow lenders to use 45 per cent of their short-term deposits for long- and medium-term loans next year instead of 40 per cent as it has mandated.

According to the General Statistics Office, as of September 20 the banking sector’s credit growth was 9.52 per cent, much lower than the 11.02 per cent rate recorded a year earlier.

Overseas remittances to Việt Nam are expected to decline mainly due to global factors.

Although Việt Nam’s balance of trade in the first eight months of the year stood at a surplus of US$2.8 billion, analysts warn about it returning to a deficit in the coming months.