Although the VN-Index closed today with a modest gain of 0.39%, nearly a hundred stocks saw gains of over 1% compared to the reference price. The VN30 basket contributed only 6 of these, with the rest being mid-cap and small-cap stocks. Notably, many of these stocks with high liquidity were among the market leaders.
The blue-chip stocks also showed some improvement in the afternoon, helping the index regain its upward momentum, but they couldn’t quite reach the peak of the morning session. Of the VN30 basket, 17 stocks improved their prices, while 10 declined. Unfortunately, some of the largest stocks, such as VCB, BID, VHM, and VIC, were among those that weakened in the afternoon session. Had there been better synergy from these stocks, the VN-Index could have performed even better, triggering a more pronounced euphoric response.
Nonetheless, the mid-cap and small-cap groups were impressive today. Mid-caps ended the day up 0.53% with a 2% increase in liquidity compared to yesterday. Small-caps rose 0.85%, while their liquidity decreased slightly by 2.3%. In contrast, the VN30-Index performed the least impressively, rising only 0.31% with a significant drop in liquidity of over 19%.
The ability of mid-cap and small-cap stocks to maintain good liquidity and price fluctuations indicates that money is flowing into this segment. In fact, since the December 2022 lows, mid-cap and small-cap stocks have offered the best returns. Of the HoSE stocks that traded over 100 billion VND, VPB, VRE, VNM, and LPB are from the VN30 basket. Other outstanding performers include DIG, which rose 6.78% with 449.8 billion VND; HAH, up 4.83% with 265.7 billion VND; DXG, up 1.31% with 252.3 billion VND; PDR, up 3.67% with 231.5 billion VND; CTD, up 4.04% with 186.4 billion VND; VTP, up 2.52% with 102.3 billion VND; and VSC, up 1.11% with 100.6 billion VND.
It’s rare for mid-cap and small-cap stocks to surpass the 100 billion VND threshold in transactions. However, volumes of a few dozen billion are more manageable for most retail investors. Today, dozens of stocks in these groups saw gains of 3-6%, creating a highly euphoric sentiment, including APG, JVC, GEG, SGN, GEE, SHI, ELC, and TRC.
Not all mid-cap and small-cap stocks that have risen sharply in recent days have impressive business results. However, the signal of a strong rise in a stable market, supported by blue-chips, is very positive and indicates increased activity among short-term money flows. This also aligns with the consistently high liquidity observed in these two groups.
Trading in blue-chip stocks has slowed and become more differentiated. Today’s strongest stocks have a mid-range capitalization within the VN30 basket. VRE rose 3.37%, and LPB gained 2.28%, making them the two strongest stocks, but their capitalization is not yet in the top 15 of the VN-Index. VRE contributed about 0.3 points to this index, far less than VCB (0.8 points) despite VCB’s more modest increase of 0.65%. At the close, the VN30 basket had a narrow spread, with 15 stocks rising and 14 falling. The lack of pull from the leading stocks could be seen as an obstacle as the VN-Index returns to the double-peak region of December last year.
Foreign investors this afternoon stepped up their buying, investing an additional 1,051.6 billion VND on the HoSE, a 47% increase from the morning session. Selling also increased, but the difference was insignificant at -62.8 billion VND. In the morning session, this group sold a net 302.4 billion VND. This is the third session since the Tet holiday that foreign investors have net sold, totaling over 2,500 billion VND. However, domestic investors have had excellent net buying days, with over 3,400 billion VND net bought in just the first two days of the week.
The Foreign Sell-Off: A $1.4 Billion Rout Sends Blue-Chip Stocks Tumbling
The VN-Index remained lackluster in the afternoon session, but many resilient stocks gained strength. The index was heavily impacted by the drag of large-cap stocks, with the VN30-Index plunging to a 16-session low as foreign selling pressure weighed down on these stocks. FPT took a significant hit, evaporating 5.15% in value.
The Red-Hot Market: FPT in the Eye of the Storm, Foreign Outflows Galore
The investor community reacted rather negatively on the first trading session of the Year of the Wood Snake, as Vietnamese markets reopened after a two-week Lunar New Year holiday amidst a volatile international backdrop. The tech-heavy NASDAQ composite index fell sharply, and this was reflected in the performance of FPT Corporation, which faced the brunt of the selling pressure. The stock tumbled as global tech stocks experienced a broad-based decline, with the impact of this trend finally catching up to the Vietnamese market.
The Stock Market: Capital Flows Unbound
The external factor has significantly faded, and the domestic market today witnessed a robust recovery with surging liquidity, despite FPT’s trading decrease. The breadth of stocks, index gains, and liquidity all aligned, indicating a consensus and a positive shift in market sentiment.
The Great Capital Exodus of 2024: Outperforming Equity Funds Still Double, Triple VN-Index Returns
Many stock funds recorded returns of up to over 30% in the past trading year, an impressive performance that outpaced the broader market.
The Foreign Block Continues to Dump Tech Stocks, with Particularly Strong Sell-Offs in FPT
Liquidity across all three exchanges surged today, with a massive 15.7 trillion VND in matched orders. The foreign bloc remained a weak link, offloading another 985.6 billion VND, with 632.9 billion VND in matched orders alone.
