Several factors caused interbank interest rates to remain high for the first three weeks of the reviewed period. Interbank interest rates stayed high at 4.5%-4.7% from the beginning of the reviewed period on March 20, but started to drop slightly from April 12. Strong credit growth increased demand for VND capital in interbank market and reduced liquidity in the banking system during the period. Funding needs to pay for imports, which grew 24.9% YoY in 3M 2017,