Vietnam Insight

Geopolitical risk of a U.S. intervention in Iran. US stock futures were little changed on Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back in the prior session, with investors positioning for a fresh round of major bank earnings. On Tuesday, the Dow fell 0.8%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.19% and the Nasdaq Composite edged 0.1% lower. The retreat was led by financials after JPMorgan slid more than 4%, as fourth quarter investment banking fees disappointed and the bank warned that a proposed one year 10% cap on credit card interest rates could weigh on consumers and the broader economy. Visa and Mastercard also came under pressure, dropping 4.5% and 3.8%, respectively. Attention now turns to results from Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citigroup due later today. Markets are also contending with heightened geopolitical risk around a possible US intervention in Iran, alongside President Donald Trump’s attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Widening market breadth, uptrend confirmed. The VNINDEX closed at 1,902.93 (+25.6 points, +1.36%) with higher-than-average trading volume over the past 20 sessions. The market saw 203 gainers and 131 losers. Stocks hindering the market's upward movement included MBB, TCB, and MCH; the stocks contributing most to the index's rise were VIC, GAS, and VHM. Foreign investors net sold 488 billion VND, primarily focusing on GMD, SHB, and VRE.

Trading Strategy: Investors may initiate positions in stocks with solid fundamentals and improving liquidity that have reclaimed their EMA50, such as Securities, Banking, Construction Materials, and Industrial Real Estate... Conversely, for sectors exhibiting weakening capital inflows—such as Residential Real Estate—investors should consider paring back exposure to manage risk if stop-loss levels are triggered.