HANOI: Vietnam devalued the dong currency for the second time this year on Thursday to support exports and curb import demand which has left it with a trade deficit.
The move had been widely expected after Vietnam recorded a US$3 billion trade deficit in the first four months of the year, compared with a surplus of US$2 billion in the same period last year.
The central bank said it had lowered the mid-point rate for the currency on the interbank market by 1 per cent to 21,673 dong per US dollar.
Dollar/dong transactions can move in a band of plus or minus 1 per cent around the mid-point, which the central bank sets daily. The previous depreciation was on Jan. 7, when the central bank also weakened the dong by 1 per cent to help stabilise the foreign exchange market.
