Foreign investors flock to the stock market The authorities have granted nearly 360 individual transaction codes for foreign investors in the January-October period, 2.5 times higher than the same period in 2012.   According to the Vietnam Securities Depository Center, 52 foreign investors were allocated with transaction codes in October alone, up by 13 percent from the previous month and more than 2 times than the same period of last year. So far this year, 604 foreign investors were granted with the codes, an increase of 70 percent year on year. In particular, the number of individual investors is up to 357 people (62 percent) and 2.5 times higher than the same period of last year. Meanwhile, the number of institutional investors also reaches 229, an increase of 23. The strong increase of the number of foreign investors shows strong interests of foreign investors in the stock market of Vietnam. This is also reflected by the upbeat assessment of the VOF - the largest foreign funds operating in Vietnam, managed by Vinacapital. According to the report to investors, Mr. Steven Bates - VOF President - said that the Vietnamese market is of great potential in the medium term and there are still many attractive investment opportunities here. Vietnam’s macroeconomics has improved after facing the challenges of the 2008-2010 period due to the impact of the global economic crisis. The government’s policies are also more transparent and more stable. The stock market continues to recover from its lowest level in many years with an anticipated economic recovery in the long term. Moreover, the stable exchange rate between the VND and the US dollar also allows foreign investors enjoy better returns. Talking to the media at the annual meeting of investors on October 17, Mr. Andy Ho - VOF director said that with the gradual emerge of stable signals, many foreign investors have revealed and they are particularly interested in the Vietnamese market. He anticipated that if the macroeconomics is better, the VN-Index may rise to 530 by the end of the year. "The listed companies in the fields of consumer goods, healthcare and agriculture will continue to generate positive profits," he said. In this positive development, as reported by the Ban Viet Securities Company (VCSC), within the last two months, foreign investors purchased with the total value of VND1.957 billion in both exchanges, about 4 times higher than the same period of last year after two months of selling. This is also a motivating factor for the increase of the VN-Index in the last month. The interest of foreign investors is not only expressed through the indirect investment inflows (FII) into the stock market but also in the rise of foreign direct investments (FDI). As reported by the Foreign Investment Bureau, Vietnam attracted more than $19.2 billion in FDI in January-October period, up 65 percent year on year, exceeding the yearly target of $13 - $14 billion for 2013. The disbursed FDI also reached nearly $9.6 billion, up more than 6 percent over the same period. However, according to Andy Ho, the Vietnam market still has some risks such as high inflation may recur, the health of the banking system, unsolved bad loans... However, Vinacapital still insisted that the long-term investment opportunities in Vietnam are very large and it will take full advantage of the opportunities. S. Tung, VietNamNet Bridge