1. Financial market News

Selling pressure on state-owned stocks drag VN-Index down

Vietnam’s benchmark VN-Index fell 0.01 percent to 1,181.56 points Friday with strong selling pressure on state-owned companies. The index stayed mostly in the green in the morning though selling pressure in the afternoon brought it down by a marginal 0.17 points. The index still surged 1.14 percent this week thanks to two gaining sessions Wednesday and Thursday. It needs a 1.07 percent gain to return to this year's peak of Jan. 15. Trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the VN-Index is based, fell 3.5 percent to VND14.58 trillion ($631 million) Friday. The bourse saw 182 stocks gain and 280 lose. The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, rose 0.14 percent, while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market fell 0.01 percent.

Detailed information here.

2. Banking news

Good outlook for bank stocks

Banks’ profits in 2021 are assessed very positively, when the epidemic is under control and credit increases. That is an important premise for bank stocks to rise and lead the market.

This year, banks only distribute dividends in shares instead of both in cash and shares as in previous years. unlike other industries, banking is a conditional business, so credit institutions (CIs) must comply with the regulations of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), including the dividend policy. Along with other cost reduction solutions, the non-cash dividend payment will help CIS have more resources to further reduce lending interest rates, supporting millions of customers hit by the epidemic.

Detailed information here.