Workers process shrimp for export at a firm in the South. Total outstanding loans in HCM City by the end of April 2022 reached more than VND3 quadrillion, of which about VND196 trillion was poured into the Government’s priority areas, including exports. — Photo thoibaonganhang.vn

Commercial banks have stepped up lending to export firms, especially those in industrial parks and export processing zones, as exports of many goods have grown strongly this year.

Nguyen Duc Lenh, deputy director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)’s HCM City branch, said total outstanding loans in HCM City by the end of April 2022 reached more than VND3 quadrillion (US$130 billion), of which about VND196 trillion was poured into the Government’s priority areas, including exports.

According to Lenh, the loans have helped many firms in industrial parks and export processing zones maintain production and business. The credit growth for the firms reached 24.4 per cent in Q1 2022, a fairly high level compared to the average credit growth of the whole banking system.

Hua Quoc Hung, head of the Management Board of HCM City Export Processing Zone and Industrial Park Authority (HEPZA), said HEPZA has conducted many surveys on credit demand, ability to access capital, and financial sources for firms in industrial parks and export processing zones so as to propose to the SBV and commercial banks appropriate policies.

According to Hung, lending to firms has been effective, helping them maintain production and business during the peak period of the pandemic and recover right after HCM City reopened.

In other cities, the lending to manufacturing and export has also increased.

Nguyen Thai Minh Quang, director of Commercial Joint Stock Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank)’s Binh Duong Province branch, said the bank is currently still maintaining an interest rate reduction policy of 0.5-1.5 per cent per year for corporate and individual customers. Vietcombank’s Binh Duong Province branch has lowered interest rates for 87 per cent of loans of corporate and individual customers.

Vo Van Buu, director of Commercial Joint Stock Bank for Industry and Trade of Vietnam (VietinBank)’s Binh Duong Industrial Park branch, said the bank has launched many preferential loan programmes, which are exclusive to manufacturing and export areas. Thus, firms in the areas have many opportunities to access loans with low interest rates to serve their production and business needs.

Private and foreign banks are also accelerating capital financing for manufacturing and export firms to capitalise on the strong recovery of export activities, especially in textile and garment, agriculture, fishery and processing industries.

A representative of ShinhanBank in HCM City said the bank is currently lending well in industrial parks and export processing zones, with outstanding loans of some $30 million at a preferential interest rate of about 7.5 per cent per year in the first one to three years. The loans to firms in industrial parks and export processing zones are continually growing well as the bank is expanding to other provinces and cities with many industrial zones.

Meanwhile, domestic banks such as HCM City Development Commercial Joint Stock Bank (HDBank), Vietnam Prosperity Commercial Joint Stock Bank (VPBank), Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPBank) and Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) have also boosted financing for export firms.

TPBank, for example, has launched a loan package worth VND1 trillion for firms to develop livestock farms with an interest rate of 8 per cent per year, while HDBank applied a preferential loan package of VND1 trillion until mid-2022 to finance salary payments for corporate clients with interest rates from 6.8 per cent per year.

Along with the strong recovery of domestic firms after successfully controlling the pandemic, it is expected that banks’ credit will continue to be poured into production and business areas to recover the economy in many cities and provinces in the near future. — VNS