On February 20 the bank cut the rates by another 0.1 per cent to 6.5 per cent annually for the latter.— Photo canthotv

HCM CITYb (Biz Hub) — Many banks in HCM City have cut deposit interest rates since Tet (the Lunar New Year).

Sacombank reduced them by 0.3-0.5 per cent for short-term deposits on February 12, with the rate for one-month deposits falling to 6 per cent and 6.6 per cent per year for less than VND50 million (US$2,370) and over VND50 million.

On February 20 the bank cut the rates by another 0.1 per cent to 6.5 per cent annually for the latter.

On the same day ACB cut rates by 0.3 per cent for short-term deposits to 6.5 per cent for one- and two-month deposits and to 6.6 per cent for three months.

Several other banks followed suit.

Many also cut interest rates on deposits of over six months. Nam A Bank cut six-month deposit interest from 8.6 to 8 per cent, and for 12 months, from 9 to 8.7 per cent.

A Sacombank official said with the State Bank of Viet Nam's message about a possible reduction of 1-2 per cent in lending rates, banks have to cut deposit rates.

They had hiked lending rates due to high demand for credit before the Lunar New Year.

According to the central bank's HCM City branch, as of the end of January lending by banks in the city had amounted to VND949 trillion ($44.5 billion), down 0.41 per cent from the end of December. — VNS