Better economic performance spurs Vietnam's stock market

Growing optimism driven by better economic performance pulled up Vietnam's stock market during the week, though remaining sluggish. The VN-Index of Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) went up 5.2 points or 1.06 percent to close at 497.5 on Friday. During the week, VN-Index gained 10.89 point or 2.23 percent against last Friday's closing session. The index experienced three ups and two downs, posting the highest level of 497.5 points on Friday and the lowest level of 492.24 points on Tuesday. Last week VN-Index ranged from 479.09 points to 486.61 points. A total of 59.715 million shares worth 907.218 billion VND (42. 99 million U.S. dollars) changed hands at the HoSE on Friday, a decrease of 4.95 percent in volume and an increase of 11.97 percent in value against Thursday. VN-30 index, the new benchmark index for the HoSE which has been applied since Feb. 6, 2012 and tracks the 30 leading shares by both market capitalization and liquidity, closed at 552.07 points on Friday, up 2.49 points or 0.45 percent against the previous trading day. On Hanoi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index concluded at 60.94 points, down 0.07 points or 0.11 percent on Friday against the previous trading day's closing session. Vietnam's September manufacturers' index PMI saw a record high level of 51.5 since survey data was available for the first time in April 2011, reflecting the stabilization of domestic conditions, according to the Hong Kong and Shangbai Banking Corporation HSBC. Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) maintained the forecast for Vietnam's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 5.2 percent in 2013. Credit ratings firm Fitch recently said the Vietnamese economy was continuing to stabilize and survived fluctuation in the global financial market that troubled other emerging markets including India and Indonesia. The agency attributed the stability to efficient fiscal and monetary management. Analysts said that expectations about business operations of enterprises in the third quarter will help retain the uptrend of the market in the short term. The State Securities Commission (SSC) recently announced it signed on to Appendix A of the International Organization of Securities Commission's Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding on Sept. 18, following the signing of Appendix B in 2011. The SSC said the signing is an important milestone, a new stage of deep integration with the international capital market to attract investment into Vietnam, proving that the global market has recognized the development of the Vietnamese stock market. The SSC stated that being party to Appendix A of the memorandum would earn domestic capital markets credibility and a better reputation with foreign investors.