Thebenchmark VN-Index edged down 0.22 percent to close at 713.14 points. Thesouthern market increased 0.64 percent on the previous day. On the Hanoi StockExchange, the HNX-Index inched up 0.34 percent to end at 87.45 points.
Bluechips led the downturn as 18 of the 30 largest shares by market value andliquidity slumped and only eight advanced.
Theresults of the two-day Fed meeting are set to be revealed on March 16 inVietnamese local time. However, according to analysts, this rate hike, if any,is forecast to have little impact on the emerging and frontier markets.
Unlikethe previous two rate hikes, currencies in emerging and frontier markets havemaintained positive movements since the end of December until now and there hasbeen no sign of foreign capital withdrawal from these markets.
Investorswere calm before Fed’s announcement due to advance warning from the US centralbank and stable developments in emerging markets are expected to keep foreigncapital inside these countries, said Nguyen The Minh, head of the capitalmarket analysis division at Saigon Securities Inc.
“Whenthe decision is announced, the market will be able to fluctuate. But in myopinion, such volatility will be short term and the market will soon be back tonormal,” Minh told the website ndh.vn.
Aftera surge in the past rallies, shares in developed markets in the EU and UnitedStates have become more expensive in comparison with counterparts in emergingmarkets and foreign funds will unlikely sell off here, Minh added.
OnMarch 15, a total of 178 million shares worth nearly 3.9 trillion VND (171million USD) were traded in the two Vietnamese exchanges. Foreign investorswere net buyers for a combined value of 56 billion VND in the two markets.
Losersincluded market-leading stocks in financial, energy and steel sectors such asVietinbank (CTG), Vietcombank (VCB), Military Bank (MBB), Saigon Securities Inc(SSI), PV Gas (GAS), PetroVietnam Drilling and Wells Service (PVD), Hoa Phat Group(HPG) and Hoa Sen Group (HSG).
Aftera hot rising streak, many realty shares corrected down, including Hoa Binh Construction(HBC), Novaland Investment (NVL) HCM Infrastructure and Investment (CII), Kinh BacCity Development (KBC), Tan Tao Investment Industry (ITA) and CotecconsConstruction (CTD).-VNA