Vietnam issues unlimited quotas for gold imports
HANOI, May 5 (Reuters) - Vietnam has issued unlimited quotas for gold imports in a
bid to liberalise its tiny bullion market, a central bank official said on Monday.
"We will issue more (import) quotas as long as there are demands from domestic
businesses, without any limits," said an official in charge of monitoring the gold
market at the central bank's foreign exchange department.
The lifting of restrictions on gold imports has prompted a surge in gold trading.
Vietnam said last October it would drop the quotas, but offered no time frame and
the official did not say when the restrictions were lifted.
So far this year, Vietnam has issued import quotas for more than 16 tonnes of the
precious metal, versus 11 tonnes for the whole of 2002.
Vietnam produces less than two tonnes of gold per year and imports between 35
tonnes and 40 tonnes for local consumption.
Reuters - May 5, 2003.
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