An employee counts U.S. banknotes at a bank in Hanoi. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy
The U.S. dollar rose to a new all-time high against the Vietnamese dong Friday morning as it strengthened against major currencies.
Vietcombank sold the greenback at VND26,195, up 0.08% from Thursday to surpass the previous peak of VND26,182. The currency slid 0.13% to VND26,445 on the black market.
The State Bank of Vietnam hiked its reference rate by 0.08% to VND24,948.
Globally, the dollar drifted higher on Friday, following small losses a day earlier, as traders grappled with the outlook for the U.S. economy following President Donald Trump’s erratic messaging on trade deals and Federal Reserve interference, Reuters reported.
Early on Friday, the dollar was up 0.3% at 143.08 yen, and 0.4% stronger at 0.8303 Swiss franc. The euro slipped 0.3% to $1.1355. Sterling eased 0.2% to $1.3314.
The U.S. currency has oscillated wildly this week, starting with a 1% tumble against major peers on Monday after Trump threatened to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting interest rates quickly enough, only to surge 1.5% a day later as Trump said he never had any intention of replacing Powell, and mooted a de-escalation in his trade war with China.
A lack of actual progress towards opening talks with Beijing, though, had the dollar drooping again later in the week. For the week overall, the dollar index – which measures the currency against six major peers – is on course for just a 0.27% rise, although that would still snap a four-week losing run.
