Vietnam sells bonds worth $1 bln

Vietnam sells bonds worth $1 bln

Dung Quat, Vietnam's first oil refinery The Finance Ministry said Vietnam has raised US$1 billion from selling 10-year bonds overseas and a portion of the proceeds will be used to fund the country’s first oil refinery.

Vietnam’s second-ever international bond sale at a yield of 6.95 percent was a success, the Vietnam Economic Times cited Deputy Finance Minister Tran Xuan Ha as saying at a press briefing in Hanoi Monday. Ha said the proceeds would be used for public expenditure and a portion would be lent to the Dung Quat oil refinery project in central Vietnam. According to the ministry, the bond issuance was important as it would open channels for the government and businesses to raise funds in international markets. Responding to the concerns about the possible impacts of the bond issue on national debt, Ha said the situation was under control. Including the newly issued bonds, the debt was “a little over 30 percent of gross domestic product, which is still under the 50 percent limit set for the 2006-2010 period.” The bonds issuance was completed January 25 in New York to yield about a percentage point more than bonds sold in January by the Philippines and Indonesia. Source: Thanh Nien, Agencies