A view of the event. Bank credit in the period focused on business and production, economic growth drivers and priority sectors, especially industry, agriculture and rural development, small- and medium-sized enterprises, trade and services. — VNS Photo Photo

HÀ NỘI — Credit in the first quarter of 2026 surged by 3.18 per cent against late last year to VNĐ19.18 quadrillion (US$730 billion), supporting Việt Nam’s GDP growth of 7.83 per cent, Phạm Thanh Hà, deputy governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), said at an event on Tuesday.

Speaking at the press conference on reviewing Q1 2026 performance of the banking industry held in Hà Nội, Hà said that bank credit in the period focused on business and production, economic growth drivers and priority sectors, especially industry, agriculture and rural development, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), trade and services.

Institutions actively disbursed funds for credit programmes as directed by the Government and the Prime Minister, such as the credit programme for the forestry and fisheries sector and the programme for lending to production, processing and consumption of high-quality and low-emission rice products in the Mekong Delta region.

Hà said: "The SBV continued to maintain the benchmark interest rates in Q1 2026 to facilitate credit institutions in having access to capital from the SBV at low costs, contributing to supporting the economy.

“At the same time, the SBV directed credit institutions to continue publishing lending interest rate information on their websites to provide customers with reference information when accessing loans.”

Phạm Chí Quang, director of the SBV’s Monetary Policy Department, told the event that at the end of March 2026, the SBV issued Official Letter No. 2342/NHNN-CSTT and held a meeting early this month, requesting credit institutions and branches of foreign banks to focus on implementing solutions to reduce deposit interest rates, contributing to cut lending rates in the coming time to support economic growth.

“Right after the meeting, commercial banks agreed to reduce interest rates," Quang said.

"Some 26 commercial banks have so far adjusted their listed deposit interest rates down by about 0.1-0.5 percentage points per year, mainly for terms of six months or more. This will provide a basis for reducing lending interest rates to support economic growth in the future.”

According to Hà, the SBV has set a credit growth of 15 per cent for 2026, with adjustments depending on the actual situation, ensuring inflation control, macroeconomic stability, support for economic growth, and the safety of the credit institution system.

“The SBV has also required credit institutions to strictly control the rate of credit disbursement to high-risk sectors, including real estate, in 2026 to channel credit flows into production and business sectors, priority sectors, and growth drivers of the economy, while ensuring the stability of monetary market liquidity and the safety of the credit institution system.”

Regarding exchange rate management, he said that since the beginning of this year, the foreign exchange market had remained stable, with the USD/VNĐ exchange rate generally trending downwards in the period before the Lunar New Year amid reduced international market pressure and improved foreign exchange supply and demand balance.

However, Hà noted, the exchange rate and foreign exchange market continued to face pressure from complex and unpredictable developments in the international market and domestic challenges and difficulties. In this context, the SBV managed the exchange rate flexibly, contributing to absorbing external shocks.

“The SBV has applied monetary policy tools to stabilise the foreign exchange market, contributing to macroeconomic stability and inflation control," Hà said.

"As a result, the foreign exchange market operates smoothly, and the legitimate foreign currency needs of the economy are met fully and promptly.” — BIZHUB/VNS