Dollar rises against dong

By Minh Hieu January 1, 2025 | 09:18 pm PT

A packet of U.S. five-dollar bills is inspected at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington March 26, 2015. Photo by Reuters

The U.S. dollar strengthened against the Vietnamese dong and gained slightly against major peers on Thursday morning.

Vietcombank sold the dollar at VND25,559, up 0.03% from Tuesday.

The greenback slid 0.19% to VND25,800 on the black market.

The State Bank of Vietnam hiked its reference rate by 0.03% to VND24,342.

Globally, the U.S. dollar kicked off 2025 on the front foot on Thursday after a strong year of gain against most currencies, with the yen sliding toward its lowest level in more than five months as investors ponder U.S. interest rates staying higher for longer, Reuters reported.

The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six others, was at 108.53 in early trade, just shy of the two-year high touched on Tuesday. The index rose 7% in 2024.

The yen fell more than 10% for its fourth year of decline. It was weaker on the first trading day of 2025 at 157.54 per dollar, not far from the five-month low touched on Tuesday, keeping traders wary of intervention from Japanese authorities.

The euro was steady at $1.0353 after dropping more than 6% in 2024. Sterling last fetched $1.2519. It fell 1.7% last year but was nevertheless the best-performing G10 currency versus the dollar, mainly as the British economy held up better than was widely expected.

Market focus early in the year will be on the incoming Trump administration and its policies that are widely expected to not only boost growth but also add to price pressure, underpinning U.S. Treasury yields and boosting dollar demand.