The HCM Stock Exchange continued its New Year’s rally on Jan.5, with the VN-Index jumping by another 2.99 percent to close at 532.53.

The value of the day’s trades also soared by 57.8 percent over Jan. 4’s session to more than 3 trillion VND (160.4 million USD), with 67.35 million shares changing hands, an increase of 55.3 percent.

Key shares continued to rise, with many blue chips hitting their ceiling prices, including HCM City Infrastructure Investment (CII), Da Nang Rubber (DRC), Tan Tao Investment and Industry (ITA), Kinh Bac Co (KBC), and Vietnam-Italy Steel (VIS).

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange on Jan. 5, the HNX-Index saw a more modest gain of 1.9 percent, closing at 183.26 points. Trading value also rose by 51.2 percent to over 1.32 trillion VND (70.6 million USD), on a total volume of nearly 37.3 million shares.

PetroVietnam Construction (PVX) remained the most active share on the northern bourse, with 4.53 million changing hands.
The Hanoi bourse on Jan. 5 welcomed the listing of 3 million shares by Vietnam Construction Co No 12 (V12). V12 closed at 37,100 VND (1.98 USD) per share on a volume of 72,500.

Positive economic data, including sustained growth and low inflation – in addition to solid earnings by listed companies – was increasing investor confidence in the stock market, said analysts from Dai Viet Securities Co.

The forthcoming shutdown of gold trading floors and an impending regulation allowing faster clearance of shares were also encouraging investors to return to the market, they added.

Dinh The Hien, a HCM City-based financial expert, believed the stock market in 2010 would be lucrative for investment in light of the frozen real estate market and new limits on the gold market.

Bao Viet Securities Co analyst Nguyen Duc Thi also predicted that securities companies would resume offering financial leverage to clients in the new year, generating greater capital flows into the market.

But Thi reckoned the market would soon see some correction in the short term as a result of feverish gains in some sessions. He advised investors look to sound shares with high potential in such fields as financial, real estate, raw materials, and consumer goods.

After three net selling sessions, foreign investors on Jan. 5 returned to being net buyers on both bourses by a volume of 806,260 shares./.