Investors monitor stock market developments at the Hồ Chí Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE). — VNA/VNS Photo

According to data provided by the Việt Nam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation (VSDC), domestic investor accounts increased by more than 330,000 in August, a slight rise compared to the previous month and the highest level in over two years.

Most of these new accounts came from individual investors, while only 131 accounts were opened by institutions.

Since the beginning of the year, the number of securities accounts held by domestic investors has grown by over 1.4 million.

By the end of August, individual investors held more than 8.6 million securities accounts, accounting for about 8.6 per cent of the population.

However, this figure does not accurately reflect the percentage of the population involved in the stock market, as an investor may hold multiple securities accounts at different securities firms.

With 8.6 million securities accounts, Việt Nam’s stock market is nearing the target of nine million securities accounts by 2025 and 11 million by 2030.

Despite a sharp decline at the beginning of August, the market stabilised and expanded with an increase of 13.63 per cent over the first eight months of the year.

Banks continued to lead the market, contributing more than 13 points to the overall rise of the VN-Index, followed by the real estate, financial services and food and beverage sectors.

Trading volume in August dropped by 3 per cent compared to already low levels in July.

Domestic institutional investors net purchased VNĐ7.24 trillion. Meanwhile, individual investors net sold VNĐ3.63 trillion and foreign investors also net sold VNĐ3.61 trillion.

Although foreign investors have been net sellers, the number of foreign investor accounts in Việt Nam continues to rise each month.

In August, the number of securities accounts held by foreign investors increased by 255.

Individual accounts rose by 262, while institutional accounts unexpectedly decreased by seven. The total number of foreign investor accounts now stands at 47,004.

In a recent market analysis, Mirae Asset Securities noted that the market will continue to experience mixed signals regarding the growth prospects of major regional economies, especially Việt Nam.

“The lack of clear growth drivers and less optimistic trends among major blue-chip stocks may lead to more frequent unpredictable trading sessions, as we have observed over the past six months, with the VN-Index fluctuating between 1,200 and 1,280 points," Mirae Asset experts noted in their report. — VNS