Foreign inflows into Vietnam stock market hit two-year high

THE HANOI TIMES — Vietnam's stock market is showing signs of positive recovery, with foreign investors returning to net buying after two consecutive sessions of net selling, reaching a two-year high of VND977 billion (US$37.6 million).

Despite forecasts by some analyst groups of a possible short-term correction due to profit-taking pressure around 1,280-1,290, the Vietnamese stock market remained upbeat on May 13.

The VN Index remained in positive territory throughout the session, gradually extending its gains to close at 1,293.4 points, more than 10 points above the benchmark.

A key positive signal during this rally was the return of foreign investors to net buying after two consecutive sessions of net selling. This group spent over VND4.1 trillion ($161 million), almost three times the previous day's figure while selling about VND3.2 trillion ($126 million).

As a result, the net buying value reached VND977 billion ($37.6 million), the highest since late May 2023.

MBB was the most bought stock by foreign investors, with a net purchase value of VND348 billion ($13.7 million). Other notable stocks that attracted significant foreign inflows included CTG, MWG, VPB, and HPG, each of which saw net purchases of between one million and five million shares.

More than 200 stocks gained on the day, twice the number of decliners. Large-cap stocks were the main drivers of the market's continued uptrend, with 20 advancing and 9 declining within the VN30 basket. MWG and CTG led the VN30 in terms of gains, rising 4.4% and 4.1%, respectively, and were also among the top contributors to the session's overall gain.

Among sectors, securities were the most buoyant with all closing above the benchmark. Small caps such as AGR, VIX, BDI, and MBS gained more than 1% while large caps such as HCM, SSI, and VND gained around 0.7%.

Steel stocks also performed well, with all constituents closing in the green, except HSG that was flat.

The banking sector was more mixed. CTG, MBB, EIB, and VPB rose more than 2%, while others such as BID, ACB, VCB, and STB posted more modest gains of 0.3-1.6%. On the negative side, four bank stocks, SSB, TPB, SHB, and LPB, closed slightly lower, although the losses were marginal.

Real estate stocks also showed a clear divergence. Gainers included NLG, KDH, AGG, HDG, and DIG, rising between 1.6% and 5%, while QCG, NVL, HQC, and VHM fell between 0.5% and 2%. Other sectors such as oil and gas, construction, and aviation also saw mixed performance.

This was the second consecutive session of gains for the stock market, driven by strong demand. Nearly 943 million shares were traded yesterday, valued at around VND23.5 trillion ($922 million). Of these, over VND12.6 trillion ($494 million) came from VN30 stocks.

According to Vietnam's securities market development strategy by 2030, specific targets include raising stock market capitalization to 100% of GDP by 2025 and 120% of GDP by 2030. The number of investor trading accounts is expected to reach nine million by 2025 and 11 million by 2030, with a focus on developing institutional and professional investors and attracting more foreign investors.