“Vietnamese Government has never before been interested in stock market like at this time and it is pinning a big hope on the development of the market,” said the Deputy Minister of Finance Le Thi Bang Tam at the workshop on “Policies to the develop stock market.”
Addressing at the workshop opened on February 21 in Hanoi, Tam said the ministry would take a lot of measures to speed up the market’s growth this year.
To help the stock market reach transaction value of 15 per cent of the gross domestic product in 2010, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) would further diversify commodities in the market such as corporate shares, bond, investment fund certificates and other derivative securities, she said.
Under the ministry's plan, more State-owned and foreign-invested companies will be privatized and listed on the bourse.
The securities trading center in Ho Chi Minh City will be transformed into a stock exchange department around 2008 and will on the listing and trading of securities of large companies, while the one in Hanoi will major in the over-the-counter market.
The plan requires the deposit services currently conducted by securities trading centers to be transferred to the Securities Depository this year.
Securities dealing companies should be expanded in terms of capacity and scale to meet the quickly changing demands of the market.
Commercial banks and insurance companies are encouraged to set up investment funds, which will help raise their total investment in the listed shares reach 25 per cent of the market value in 2010.
In addition, the Finance Ministry leader also said that the ministry would focus on legal reform, removing all unreasonable conditions in order to create the most liberal climate possible for stock exchange transactions.
Tam said that regulations on bond issuance will be amended to favor mediators and encourage public involvement in bond trading and exchange.
The decree on privatized State-owned enterprises (SOEs) will be revised to ensure transparent information of SOE asset evaluation and increase power of privatized firms in the use of surplus after issuing additional shares.
Rules on the ratio of shares set for foreign investors in both the stock market and joint stock companies are easing towards a final removal, expectedly in July when the investment and enterprise laws come into effect, said Tam.
The forum, considered a chance to collect suggestions from investors and financial mediators, also heard a number of proposals from them.
Vu Viet Ngoan, general director of the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, said the government should open the stock market wider for commercial banks whose operations now are limited at bond transactions.
Director of Sacom, which is listed on the HCM City securities market, Do Van Trac pointed out that the market’s lack of advertisement, communication and education about the stock market as a reason for the lukewarm participation of the general public in the market.
He suggested that the stock market should be included in the school curriculum to help young people familiarize themselves with the market.
Tam said that the finance ministry would consider handling the problems.
Regarding plans to develop the stock market in 2006, chairman of the State Securities Commission (SSC) Tran Xuan Hanoi said that the market is expected to see total transaction values on two bourses equivalent to 2-3 per cent of the GDP.
By the end of last year, total value of listed corporate shares reached VND9.356 trillion (US$592 million), accounting for 1.2 per cent of GDP while value of listed bonds reached VND38.122 trillion (US$2.4 billion), or 4.9 per cent of GDP.
Total transaction values in 2005 grew by 64 per cent from 2004.
P.V
Vietnamese
