Wall Street gives shares early lift

Rubber shares jumped in value yesterday on news of Thai rubber growers struggling with bad weather and growing demand for Vietnamese rubber in China. — VNA/VNS Photo Van Khanh

The VN-Index closed largely unchanged at 491.90 points.

Trading volume rose 13.8 per cent from Monday's session but remained modest at just 42.1 million shares, worth a combined VND1.3 trillion (US$66.7 million).

Investors seemed to be growing more positive toward the market, as reflected by improved buys of blue chips early in yesterday's session, commented Le Cong, an analyst with financial services provider Stoxplus Corporation.

"The fact that the Dow Jones surpassed 10,560 points overnight definitely had a positive impact on trades, and the market advanced during the first 40 minutes of the session," said Cong.

Traders quickly saw an opportunity to earn instant profits, however, resulting in the significant sell-off in the final minutes, Cong said.

Thanh Cong Textile and Garment (TCM) was the most-active share, responsible for transactions of 1.7 million shares.

Hoang Minh Thang, a broker with a Ha Noi-based securities company, said that consolidating buys in this code could be setting up a profit-hunting wave, following the companies release of impressive second-quarter earnings.

TCM posted a net profit of VND23.9 billion ($1.2 million) in the second quarter, an increase of five times over the corresponding period in the previous year.

"Meanwhile, TCM shares stay at a high-potential price of just VND20,000 per share," Thang said.

Day traders could find their own opportunities by pumping money into different sectors, but they should expect low profits, he added.

Cong noted a substantial rise in rubber stocks yesterday.

"The country's supply of rubber increased in July due to a bumper crop," Cong said. "Meanwhile, Thailand – the world's leading rubber exporter – is coping with unfavourable weather, and China, Viet Nam's biggest importer, was running short of rubber to meet domestic demand."

Expectations of increased exports would continue to drive up the prices of rubber shares, he predicted.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange yesterday, shares refused to respond to the global trend, and the HNX-Index fell by an additional 0.59 per cent to end the day at 150.48 points.

The value of trades remained weak at just VND806.8 billion ($41.4 million) on a total volume of 28.5 million shares.

"Investors are seeking profits here as more capital has moved toward penny shares on this market," Thang said, noting that the slowing decline of the HNX-Index suggested that the current profit-taking cycle had ended and the Ha Noi market would soon rebound. — VNS