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🇻🇳 Dong-stabilising t-bills set to start maturing today, next steps unclear

US$409 million worth of treasury bills issued by the State Bank of Vietnam in September as a means to stymie the devaluation of the dong are set to mature today, VN Express is reporting.

Why it matters: The SBV has issued nearly US$10 billion worth of T-bills since September 21 to remove excess cash from the economy and reduce pressure on the local currency. But with this cash set to return to the market that pressure is also likely to return.

Analysis: As a stopgap measure this has worked ok but it was never going to be sustainable. That said, with mandates to keep interest rates low but to also limit the devaluation of the dong, the state bank has few other options. That said moving forward, the SBV can only issue so many T-bills and it will likely need to start seriously considering other options, namely either letting the dong devalue or raising interest rates.

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