Vietnam Insight

Waiting for U.S. jobs report. US stock futures held firm on Thursday following a mixed performance on Wall Street, as investors awaited the August jobs report at week’s end for fresh signals on interest rate policy. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 gained 0.51% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.02%, while the Dow slipped 0.05%. Still, labor market concerns persisted after job openings fell to levels rarely seen since the pandemic. Attention now turns to the ADP private payrolls report and weekly jobless claims due Thursday, before the closely watched nonfarm payrolls data is released on Friday.

The uptrend continues. VN-Index closed at 1,681.30, down 0.91 points or 0.05%, with trading volume lower than the 20-day average. The market had 212 gainers and 110 decliners. The stocks that contributed most to the market's gains were MBB, HPG, and BID, while VIC, VCB, and VHM were the biggest drags. Foreign investors were strong net sellers, with over 2.885 trillion VND in net sales, primarily focused on HPG, VPB, and FPT.

Trading Strategy: The priority strategy is to hold positions and be ready to take profit at target levels. For short-term traders, if the market corrects toward the 1,600 zone and rebounds, a light allocation can be considered. If the market pulls back toward 1,500, it will present a clearer buying opportunity for medium-term positions. Investors may allocate more aggressively, focusing on stocks with strong catalysts such as index reclassification, robust earnings growth, or valuations lower than the overall market.