Vietnam Insight

US stocks cautious ahead of PPI data. Dow and S&P 500 futures were little changed on Thursday, while Nasdaq 100 futures edged lower as investors digested the latest batch of tech earnings. In extended trading, Cisco Systems fell 4% after the tech firm’s sales outlook linked to the AI data center boom came in below expectations. Photonics company Coherent and AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems also declined 3% and 16%, respectively, following disappointing quarterly results. On the economic front, investors awaited Thursday’s producer inflation data after Wednesday’s consumer price index report showed relatively stable core inflation, reducing pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. In regular trading on Wednesday, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite gained 0.26% and 0.54%, respectively, while the Dow slipped 0.04%.

Range-Bound Trading with Resistance at 1,800. The VN-Index closed the trading session at 1,793.18 points (up 19.77 points, or 1.11%), with trading volume falling below the 20-session average. During the session, 160 stocks advanced while 154 declined. VIC, VHM, and GAS were the primary positive contributors to the index, whereas TCX, VCB, and CTG exerted downward pressure. Foreign investors recorded a net buy of nearly VND316 billion, focusing their purchases on VIC, VIX, and SSI, while net selling VHM, ACB, and TCB.

Trading Strategy: Investors may take advantage of market pullbacks to gradually accumulate positions while maintaining a prudent cash allocation to manage risk and preserve flexibility to increase exposure once a market recovery is confirmed. Investors should avoid using margin to bottom-fish, as the market may still be in the process of forming a second bottom. In addition, technical rebound sessions provide an opportunity to rebalance portfolios by reducing exposure to companies whose business performance has fallen short of expectations.

Current portfolio: LPB, PAN, MBB, POW; Watchlist: HPG, REE, NVL

High-risk stocks to avoid: Real estate (PDR, KDH, NLG), HDG and PNJ