Credit institutions in Ha Tinh province continue to reduce interest rates on savings deposits, creating room to lower lending interest rates and support the economy in the last month of 2023.
In just the past month, Vietcombank's Ha Tinh branch has adjusted savings interest rates three times. Most recently, on December 11, 2023, Vietcombank officially reduced interest rates by 0.2% per year across several terms. Accordingly, the interest rate for 1-2 month terms decreased to 2.2% per year, the 3-month term to 2.5% per year, the 6-month term to 3.5% per year, while the 12-month term remained unchanged at 4.8% per year. Thus, the 4.8% per year interest rate is currently the highest offered at Vietcombank's Ha Tinh branch.
The highest deposit interest rate at Vietcombank's Ha Tinh branch currently is 4.8% per year.
According to Ms. Hoang Thi Ngoc Thao, Deputy Head of Customer Service Department, Vietcombank Ha Tinh Branch, the reduction in deposit interest rates aims to create room for further reductions in lending interest rates and boost credit growth to serve the economy before, during, and after the Lunar New Year. Currently, the total mobilized capital of the branch has reached over 13,000 billion VND, a significant increase compared to the beginning of 2023.
Effective December 12, 2023, VietinBank's Ha Tinh branch also implemented a reduction in deposit interest rates. It is known that shortly before that (November 29, 2023), VietinBank also reduced deposit interest rates. Currently, the interest rate for deposits with maturities of 1-2 months and 2-3 months at VietinBank is 2.6%/year; for maturities of 3-under 6 months it is 3%/year; for maturities of 6-under 9 months and 9-under 12 months it is 4%/year; and for maturities of 12 months to under 24 months it is 5%/year. The highest interest rate at VietinBank currently is 5.3%/year, applicable to deposits with a maturity of 24 months or more.
According to our research, the recent continuous decline in deposit interest rates has affected people's ability to save money in banks. Currently, interest rates are pegged at a low level, so many people choose to deposit money for short terms (mainly 1-3 months) to "wait and see" the market. In addition, some customers, when their savings are due, only deposit a portion and tend to invest the rest in other markets when they see positive signs of recovery. Specifically, the continuous increase in gold prices has attracted investment attention from the public. Furthermore, Ha Tinh City and surrounding areas are implementing land auctions in planned areas with suitable starting prices, which are also attracting the participation of investors.
Customers conducting transactions at VietinBank's Ha Tinh branch.
According to industry experts, the "Big 4" banks – Vietcombank, VietinBank, BIDV, and Agribank – have all reduced deposit interest rates to historically low levels, even lower than during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, a series of other joint-stock commercial banks in the area, such as Techcombank, HDbank, MB, MSB, etc., have also simultaneously reduced deposit interest rates this December. In fact, many banks have reduced interest rates twice since the beginning of the month.
Ms. Duong Thu Huong, Head of Customer Service at Techcombank Ha Tinh, said: “In December, Techcombank reduced deposit interest rates twice. Recently, credit growth has been difficult, so this move is necessary for the bank to continue lowering lending interest rates to serve the needs of production and business, and priority investment sectors as directed by the Government.”
Similarly, on December 15, 2023, MB Bank's Ha Tinh branch announced a 0.2%/year reduction in interest rates for deposits with terms of 1-8 months and a 0.1%/year reduction for terms of 9-60 months. This was also the second time since the beginning of December that the bank had reduced deposit interest rates.
According to the online deposit interest rate chart, the rate for a 1-month term is now only 2.9%/year, 2 months is 3.1%/year, 3 months is 3.2%/year, 4 months is 3.4%/year, and 5 months is 3.5%/year. In addition, the rate for 6-8 month terms is 4.4%/year, 9-10 month terms is 4.6%/year, 11 and 12 month terms are 4.7% and 4.9%/year respectively, 13 and 15 month terms are 5%/year, and 18 month terms are 5.4%/year...
Ms. Tran Thi Thuy (Tran Phu Ward, Ha Tinh City) shared: “Compared to the beginning of the year, I see that deposit interest rates have dropped sharply, with some banks reducing them by up to 4% per year. In this context, my family only chooses to deposit a portion of our savings for short terms (3 months) to wait for more positive signals. In addition, I allocate a portion of my funds to invest in the gold market.”
According to reports, the low demand for loans from businesses, cooperatives, and individuals, leading to excess liquidity in the banking system, is the main reason for the continuous sharp decline in deposit interest rates. Generally, current deposit interest rates are very low compared to the same period last year, even though banks have their own interest rate policies applied to different customer groups, depending on the deposit value or the capital balance of each branch. Lower deposit interest rates are a necessary condition for further reductions in lending interest rates.
Banks have implemented various solutions to reduce deposit interest rates and cut costs, thereby creating room to lower lending interest rates to serve the economy.
Over the past period, credit institutions in the area have strictly complied with the regulations on interest rate management issued by the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, with no instances of unfair competition or exceeding the ceiling. In addition, credit institutions have implemented various solutions to reduce deposit interest rates and cut costs, thereby creating room to reduce lending interest rates for customers. It is estimated that by December 31, 2023, the total mobilized capital of the banking sector in Ha Tinh reached VND 98,252 billion, an increase of 16.59% compared to the end of 2022. |
Truong Phuc
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