According to State Bank of Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City Branch, as of the end of September 2023, the amount of inward remittances to Ho Chi Minh City reached USD 6.68 billion, exceeding the figure for the whole year 2022.

Since the beginning of 2023, although the world economy has faced many difficulties and challenges, the amount of inward remittances to Ho Chi Minh City has remained very stable. Notably, the amount of inward remittances to the city over nine months increased impressively, exceeding that of the whole year 2022.

As of the end of September 2023, the amount of inward remittances to the city reached USD 6.68 billion, an increase of 40% over the same period in 2022 and equal to 101.3% compared to the whole year 2022.

In the third quarter of 2023 alone, inward remittances reached USD 2.35 billion, an increase of 6.2% compared to the second quarter of 2023. Meanwhile, the figure for the second quarter of 2023 only increased by 4.5% compared to the first quarter of 2023.

Thus, the amount of inward remittances to the city continues its positive growth trend, with the next quarter achieving higher growth than the previous quarter and maintaining a good growth rate.

Notably, remittances from Asia continue to account for the highest proportion, specifically accounting for more than 53% of remittances to the city and an increase of nearly 20% compared to the previous quarter. Asia is a region with economic and political stability along with increasingly expanding economic relations and labor cooperation. Therefore, according to Mr. Lenh, this will be the area that will have an impact on remittance growth in the upcoming period.

According to Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City Branch, remittances are one of the sources that contribute to ensuring the relationship between supply and demand in foreign currency, while also effectively supporting monetary policy, exchange rates and the foreign exchange market. This is even more meaningful in the context of fluctuations in strong currencies and inflation in several countries, putting certain pressure on exchange rates and the relationship between exchange rates - interest rates and inflation.

In order for remittances to continue a good growth trend in the upcoming period, especially in the last months of the year, credit institutions and economic organizations that directly receive and pay in foreign currency in the city need to continue to focus on improving operational efficiency and improving the quality of foreign currency receipt and payment services.

Every year, the amount of inward remittances to Ho Chi Minh City alone accounts for more than half of the country's inward remittances. According to official data from the State Bank, inward remittances to Vietnam each year exceed USD 10 billion, eg USD 12.5 billion in 2021. According to estimates by the World Bank (WB) and the International Organization for Migration, on average in the last three years, Vietnam has received up USD to 17-18 billion in remittances each year.

Kylie Nguyen