This trend was demonstrated through a series of important Government decisions such as Decision 528 on reviewing the list of State-owned enterprises which must conduct equitisation, post their shares and register transactions on the bourse; Decision 189 on the establishment of a centre for independent securities custody; and Decision 328 on increasing the maximum ownership proportion of foreign investors to 49 percent.
When the Vietnam Milk Joint Stock Corporation (Vinamilk) posts their shares in the coming time, the scale of the security market will double as the company’s equity capital is worth nearly VND1,600 billion - equivalent to the entire capital level of the stock market at the end of 2005. In addition, many more major companies in the areas of electricity, telecommunications and banking with attractive shares of the national economy will participate in the securities market in the near future.
Worthy of note is that the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) successfully issued more than VND1,300 billion worth of bonds to increase capital sources on the domestic market in a short period, testifying to the efficiency of the equitisation of State-owned commercial banks.
According to the State Securities Commission (SSC), the value of the shares listed on the bourse will make up 3 percent of GDP by the end of 2006.
If this proportion is reached, the securities market will really become a long-term capital mobilisation channel for the national economy as it enters its sixth years of operation, which is also the first year of the five-year plan (2006-2010) for socio-economic development.
Many policies to facilitate the development of the stock market have been proposed. The Unified Enterprise Law, which was ratified by the National Assembly and will come into effect in the middle of this year, will create strong reforms in the operating environment of enterprises and encourage more businesses to participate in the stock market. Of special note, under the roadmap for stock market development, the Securities Law will be enforced, creating a legal foundation for the operating of the market.
The National Securities Council has identified its tasks for this year to include expanding its operation scale and improving the quality of the securities market to make it more transparent and create more confidence in investors.
In addition, the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Centre will be enhanced under a project to turn it into a Securities Trading Service able to meet market demand and be linked to regional and international securities centres.
Meanwhile, the Hanoi Securities Trading Centre will continue to finalise its transaction system under the decentralised model and the Securities Custody Centre will fulfill all necessary conditions to carry out its functions of depositing, registering and liquidating bonds from securities trading centres.
With prompt and practical actions, the securities market in 2006 is expected to achieve breakthroughs and open up promising prospects for the Vietnam securities market this year and in the future.
Source: VOV
Jan. 20, 2006