Market capitalisation rose 19 per cent, compared with 2013, while transaction volume doubled. — Photo doanhnghiep

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Many experts have forecast bright prospects for the Vietnamese stock market this year.

Last year was quite a stormy year for stocks, owing to the effects of the East Sea disputes and the state of the domestic and global economy. "However, the market is still gaining and on track to become one of the world's fastest growing markets," said State Securities Commission Chairman Vu Bang.

Market capitalisation rose 19 per cent, compared with 2013, while transaction volume doubled.

Vietnamese securities watchdogs had urgently adopted measures to restructure the market in 2014 and created new products, such as new indices and domestic exchange-traded funds, in preparation for the development of a derivative market.

Bang expects to see many of these opportunities for investors this year. Viet Nam's economic data is also signalling growth, paving the way for many activities in the market, including the equitisation of State-owned enterprises.

Tran Van Dung, chairman of the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, also said the stock market will see an uptrend this year, due to a stable inflation and interest rate platform.

In addition, Bang believes that if the aforementioned positive steps are taken, foreign investors will return to the Vietnamese market.

Meanwhile, Duong Van Thanh, general director of the Viet Nam Securities Depository, pledged to offer both policy and technical changes to boost the accuracy and convenience of transactions, as well as expand liquidity.

Securities firms shared the same view.

According to VNDirect Securities, investment opportunities will be available in shares that dipped late in 2014. In addition, real-estate, banking and logistics shares will also recover. — VNS