Vietnam: Investors look for the bottom as markets plunge

Vietnam’s stock markets are experiencing wrenching volatility as market rumours, inflation-curbing rate increases and a lack of positive economic data take their toll. On May 18 the Ho Chi Minh City exchange’s VNIndex dropped 2.03% to 454.91 points, the most it had in a single day since mid-March. Since then markets have continued to be volatile, with several consecutive days in May in which over half of the stocks in the market were at or near the limits of their trading bands (after which trading is suspended). Several factors are contributing to the unusual amount of volatility.