Vietnam’s stock market remains one of the most attractive for medium term investors.

That was the verdict of a workshop on Vietnam’s capital and finance market held on November 30.

Vietnam’s stock market once witnessed very rapid growth. The VN Index once reached 1,173 points in early 2009, however, it fell dramatically to 235 points at the end of February 2009.

Andy Ho, director of VinaCapital fund management company, while trying to persuade people that Vietnam is a market deserving of investment, said investors have learned from the mistakes of the boom period of 2006-2007.
He added the market will be attractive because the Government will speed up the equitization of big state owned general corporations, which means more valuable commodities will be available.

VinaCapital has invested in some 10 businesses in Vietnam and the investment value has increased significantly, Andy Ho said.

As the stock market has bottomed out, it has been attracting the interest of foreign investors. Nguyen Xuan Minh, chairman and general director of Vietnam Asset Management Limited (VAM) said that a lot of investors have shown signs of willing to pour investment in Vietnam’s stock market.
Louis Nguyen, chairman of Saigon Asset Management (SAM) said that SAM is moving ahead with the setting up of a new fund which will aim to make investment in the companies planning to have IPO (Initial public offering).
As an emerging market, experts say, Vietnam’s stock market can be too sensitive to state policies.

However, government agencies have promised to apply flexible and reasonable policies in order to make the stock market more attractive.
Deputy chairman of the State Securities Committee (SSC) Nguyen Doan Hung said Vietnam will raise the foreign ownership ratio allowed in local companies, except banks, to 49 percent.

Also in an effort to attract portfolio investment, Hung said the Government plans to remove tax on transferring profits abroad.

They will allow joint ventures and foreign invested enterprises to turn into joint stock companies, issue more shares to increase capital and list on exchanges.

Vietnam stock market now has the market capitalization volume of 38 billion dollar, accounting for 40 percent of GDP.