Hanoi, Sep 30 (IANS): The State Bank of Vietnam will continue to take necessary measures to control the gap between domestic and global gold prices at an appropriate level in response to surging gold ring prices in recent weeks, Vietnam News Agency reported Monday.

The central bank will coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors to carry out inspection on the gold market and trading activities of gold bar enterprises, stores, distributors, buyers and sellers, it said.

The bank vows to propose strict penalties on violations, it said, Xinhua news agency reported.

The gold ring price in Vietnam jumped to a new historic peak of over 83 million Vietnamese dong (3,378 US dollars) per tael last week.

The difference between Saigon Jewelry Company (SJC)-branded gold bar prices and global prices reached 18 million dong (732 dollars) per tael for several times during the first half of 2024.

In June this year, the central bank started to sell gold bars directly to four state-owned commercial banks and SJC so that these organizations can distribute them to retail buyers in an effort to stabilize the domestic gold market.