Vingroup stocks rebound, adding nearly $1 billion to Vuong's fortune

After five consecutive declines, Vietnam's stock market rebounded on Oct. 5 as selling pressure eased and bargain hunters returned to several groups of stocks.

Large-cap stocks, particularly companies in the Vingroup ecosystem, played an important role in lifting the VN-Index. Vingroup shares, traded under the VIC ticker, rose VND8,000 to VND232,000, or about $8.80, while Vinhomes (VHM) gained VND400 to VND68,300, or about $2.60.

The rise in VIC had a significant impact on the wealth of Vingroup Chairman Pham Nhat Vuong.

According to Forbes, Vuong's fortune increased by $987 million, or 2.83%, to $35.9 billion as of Oct. 5. That placed him 63rd among the world's richest people.

Another notable move came from LPBank shares (LPB), which hit the daily ceiling price of VND43,000, or about $1.63.

More than 2.4 million LPB shares changed hands, with foreign investors making net purchases of nearly 500,000 shares. At the close, buy orders for around 680,000 shares remained queued at the ceiling price.

LPB has attracted considerable attention since Vuong became a major shareholder.

As of June 23, Vuong held 146.2 million LPB shares, equivalent to 4.894% of the bank's charter capital. His wife, Pham Thu Huong, owned about 148.3 million shares, representing 4.97%.

LPB climbed as high as VND56,000 per share on June 25 before retreating to VND40,200 on Oct. 2, a decline of about 28% from its peak.

At the current price of VND43,000, Vuong's LPB stake is worth approximately VND6.29 trillion, or about $239 million, an increase of around VND410 billion, or $15.6 million, from the previous weekend.

LPB was not alone in rebounding. Shares across the banking, securities, retail and consumer sectors also recovered, helping large-cap stocks regain their role in supporting the market after several sessions of intense selling pressure.

VN-Index rebounds, but questions remain over liquidity

The VN-Index ended the Oct. 5 session up 15.49 points, or 0.9%, at 1,753.2.

Gains dominated the VN30 basket of large-cap stocks and spread to a range of mid- and small-cap shares.

However, the rebound came amid relatively weak liquidity. The total value of shares traded on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange was only about VND13.3 trillion, or $505 million.

The figure suggests that money has yet to return to the market in force, despite an improvement in bargain-hunting demand.

Pressure from foreign investors has also persisted.

During the Oct. 5 session, foreign investors made net purchases of around 3.1 million shares of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group (HPG), while selling nearly 4.55 million Techcombank (TCB) shares and more than 4 million shares of jewelry retailer Phu Nhuan Jewelry (PNJ).

Foreign investors recorded net sales of more than VND4.8 trillion, or about $182 million, in September, bringing total net selling during the first nine months of the year to nearly VND100 trillion, or approximately $3.8 billion.

The continued withdrawal of foreign capital in the first weeks after Vietnam was officially upgraded by FTSE Russell on Sept. 21 has run counter to the expectations of some investors.

On the downside, PNJ fell another VND1,400 to VND21,650 per share after five consecutive sessions of hitting its daily floor price.

KOS also fell to the floor for an 11th consecutive session, dropping to VND13,700, with sell orders totaling more than 35.7 million shares remaining unmatched.

The market is also facing pressure from rising deposit interest rates, which have reached 9-10% annually at some institutions for terms of six to 12 months.

Higher savings rates are encouraging some capital to move into bank deposits, reducing the relative appeal of equities.

Before the rebound, the VN-Index had fallen for five consecutive sessions and entered a short-term downtrend, testing the 61.8% Fibonacci support zone at around 1,730-1,745 points while trading near its 50-day moving average.

The index's rebound above 1,750 is a positive signal, but it is not yet enough to confirm that the downward trend has ended.

Stronger liquidity and a broader return of capital across the market will be needed to reinforce the recovery in the sessions ahead.

Manh Ha