Exchange-traded funds restructuring delivers mixed results
On the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, the VN-Index closed the week
0.3 percent lower at 504.45 points, while the HNX-Index on the northern
bourse gained 1.9 percent to 67.5 points.
According
to Vietstock.vn, the restructuring of the investment lists of two ETFs
did not have a large impact on the market last week. However, investors
showed caution, which resulted in low liquidity levels during the start
of the trading week.
The domestic petrol price hike
on December 18 did not seem to affect the market significantly, and
liquidity improved on the last two trading days of the week as the ETFs
completed their restructuring.
On the northern
bourse, the trading volume averaged 90.411 million shares, with an
average trading value of 1.473 trillion VND (70.14 million USD).
The trading value reached a high level on Friday, as 142.42 million
shares were traded at a total value of 3.03 trillion VND (144.7 million
USD), which is twice the average of the bourse's weekly trading value.
The VN-Index managed to increase on Tuesday and
Thursday, but the increases failed to support the benchmark index to
close higher at the end of the week.
On the northern
bourse, an upward trend was maintained until Thursday, but the trend
reversed on December 20. An average of 316.628 million shares changed
hands, while average trading value was 483.07 billion VND (23 million
USD).
During the past trading week, there were signs
of recovery in speculative stocks from the real estate and construction
sectors, such as the FLC Group (FLC), An Duong Thao Dien Real Estate
(HAR), Viet-Han Corporation (VHG), Petroland (PTL) and Hoang Quan Real
Estate (HQC). These stocks witnessed strong increases during the week
and attracted cash investments from investors.
Foreign investors took turns at being net sellers and net buyers during
the past week. On December 20, in particular, foreign investors became
net buyers of shares valued at 735.5 billion VND (35.02 million USD), in
particular, strongly buying shares of Vinacafe Bien Hoa (VCF).
HCM City-listed real estate giant Vingroup (VIC) lost up to 7 percent
last week. According to Vietstock Finance, the decline was due to the
net selling of a total of 63.8 billion VND (3.038 million USD) by
foreign investors as a result of the ETFs' restructuring.
According to FPT Securities, the restructuring of the ETFs generated
strong selling pressure for bluechips on December 20, causing the
benchmark indices to decline on both the national stock exchanges.
Real estate sector stocks were in the limelight last week, according
to Bao Viet Securities, which noted there were no signs, however, that
the trend would continue over the long term. It added that opportunities
only existed for real estate companies that successfully implemented
debt restructuring schemes.
Bao Viet Securities also
forecast that stocks of gas companies and securities firms would be
potential leaders of the next wave of stock gains.
The US Federal Reserve's move to taper its stimulus package by 10
billion USD a month to 75 billion USD is forecast to benefit Vietnam's
economy in the long term since it is a large trading partner in general,
and the stock market, in particular, through foreign capital inflows,
according to stock analysts.-VNA