Vietnam stocks predicted to swing for another week

The Vietnamese stock market is still vulnerable to the unpredictability of global shocks (Photo: VNA)

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange increased by total 0.58 percent to finish last week at 980.00 points.

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index lost total 0.43 percent to end last week at 102.35 points.

Nearly 206 million shares were traded on the two local exchanges, worth 4.52 trillion VND (194.4 million USD).

The opposition of the two local indices means investors are unsure about the short-term prospects of both global and domestic markets, according to analysts.

International investors then tried to offload their local assets and turned to safer ones to avoid the risks.

In Vietnam, foreign investors last week net-sold 834 billion VND worth of Vietnamese shares. They sold net 1.04 trillion VND in the previous week.

The last two weeks of net foreign selling indicates foreign investors are running out of confidence, analysts said.

The Vietnamese stock market is now under heavy pressure from the international political and economic news, said Le Duc Khanh, director of market strategy department at PetroVietnam Securities (PSI).

The main concern is how the US economy, if it falls, will affect the Vietnamese economy, he said.

That concern is driving the market sentiment and results in the mixed responses among investors, he added.

The US-China trade war and the development of the US benchmark 10-year bond make the global markets quite volatile, Vu Minh Duc, director of market research and analysis at Viet Capital Securities, told tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn.

This week, there is no sign showing the global stocks will settle down, so the Vietnamese shares may continue hovering, he said.

The foundation of the Vietnamese stock market is not stable, so there is little chance for a sustainable short-term uptrend, according to BIDV Securities Corp.

The market will move in a tight range between 970-985 points this week and more declines are expected, Khanh at PSI said.

Last week, the benchmark VN-Index advanced thanks to the growth of bank and consumer stocks. Food and beverage producers also performed well.