Standard & Poor’s has launched its S&P Vietnam
10 Index to help foreign investors better gauge the largest and most
liquid companies listed on the country’s stock exchanges.


The new index comprises consumer discretionary,
energy, financial, industrial, information technology, materials and
utilities companies, Standard & Poor’s said in a statement.


The top five companies in the index – from the main
exchange and the smaller Hanoi market – are FPT Corp. (FPT), Petroleum
Technical Services Corporation (PVS), PetroVietnam Drilling & Well
(PVD), PetroVietnam Fertilizer & Chemicals (DPM) and PetroVietnam
Insurance (PVI).


“The index will provide international investors with
access and tradable exposure to the Vietnamese equity markets,” Senior
Director Robin Lo of Standard & Poor’s Index Services said in the
statement.


“The S&P Vietnam 10 Index is designed to account
for foreign investment restrictions and global investors’ requirements
of high liquidity and accessibility,” he said.


Companies must have a float-adjusted market
capitalization above $50 million and a three-month average daily
trading value above US$250,000 to be included in the index, which is
rebalanced quarterly to reflect current liquidity and foreign
investment restrictions, S&P said.