Vietnam Policy Panel Proposes Ending State Monopoly on Gold (1)

Vietnam’s National Financial and Monetary Policy Advisory Council proposed ending the government’s monopoly on gold bar production and gold imports because the metal is no longer used as a major currency.

The 12-year-old regulation putting the government in control of gold “has achieved success and fulfilled its mission,” the council said, according to a post on the government’s website on Friday. The council proposed the change, which would allow more companies to produce gold bars, to the government and the central bank.

The proposal comes after the government has repeatedly directed the central bank and other agencies to stabilize Vietnam’s ...