Vietnam Insight

Highlights:

• On the morning of February 14, information from the European-American Market Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade) indicated that Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien recently had a meeting with the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam to discuss economic and trade cooperation between the two countries in the near future.
• President Trump directed that retaliatory tariffs be applied worldwide, meaning any country that imposes tariffs on the U.S. will face tariffs in return. "Not more, not less," Trump said to reporters at the White House on February 13.
• The U.S. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.4% month-over-month and 3.3% year-over-year, both higher than expected.

Technical view: The VN-Index closed the week at 1,273.08 points (+0.88 points; +0.07%), with liquidity continuing to improve despite the index only slightly rising. Foreign investors net sold around VND 1,800 billion last week. Capital flows shifted into the mid-cap sector, while the banking sector showed divergence, preventing significant improvement in the index. The resistance level at 1,280 is creating short-term profit-taking pressure.

Investment ideas: A short-term trading strategy is more appropriate in this phase. Investors can consider holding and partially taking profits with market-sensitive stocks as the VN-Index approaches the 1,280-1,300 range. Sectors to focus on include securities, as trading liquidity is improving.