Major economic policies take effect from May, 2025

Classification by economic sectors

Circular 07/2025/TT-BKHDT (Circular 07) dated February 13, 2025, providing regulations on statistical classification according to economic types is coming into effect from May 1, 2025.

The Circular 07 aims to establish a unified statistical classification system for economic units, serving state statistical activities. This classification helps identify and categorize economic units with similar characteristics into corresponding economic types, providing a basis for accurate and efficient collection, analysis, and reporting of economic data.

The statistical classification system by economic type is divided into two levels:

- Level 1 comprises four economic types namely State-owned economy, collective economy, private economy and FDI economy.

- Level 2 consists of 17 economic types, each coded with two digits corresponding to Level 1.

Updated provisions on petroleum trading

Circular 18/2025/TT-BCT issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on March 13, 2025 supplements regulations on the mechanism for managing gasoline prices.

Based on data on factors that make up gasoline prices in line with regulations and opinions participating in managing gasoline prices of the Ministry of Finance in writing, the Ministry of Industry and Trade announces the basic price and the selling price of gasoline.

In case necessary, in order to ensure the supply of gasoline for the domestic market, the Ministry of Industry and Trade shall specify the progress of importing and purchasing gasoline domestically or adjust the total minimum gasoline source for traders to implement.

Petroleum traders, petroleum distributors with petroleum warehouses owned by other petroleum traders for lease are responsible for reporting quarterly on the situation of warehouse use and lease according to the issued form to the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Department of Industry and Trade at the warehouse lenders before the 10th of the first month of the following period.

Fresh regulations for foreign investment in Vietnamese financial institutions

Under Decree No. 69/2025/ND-CP, amending several provisions of Decree No. 01/2014/ND-CP regarding foreign investment in Vietnamese financial institutions, foreign investors could only buy treasury stocks which were purchased by credit institutions before January 1, 2021.

Total foreign ownership in Vietnamese commercial banks is capped at 30 percent, with some exceptions, while that in non-bank credit institutions is no more than 50 percent.

In special cases involving weak or troubled financial institutions, the Prime Minister is in charge of deciding on ownership percentage of a foreign organization or a strategic foreign investor.

The new decree also paves the way for foreign ownership in commercial banks undergoing mandatory transfers to exceed 30 percent but not surpass 49 percent of charter capital, provided the bank is not majority state-owned.

If foreign investors surpass the regulated thresholds, they must reduce their ownership percentage within six months to comply with the limits.

The decree will come into effect on May 19./.