Good Morning Vietnam Stocks

On Friday, the Market Vectors Vietnam ETF (VNM) was up 2.5% from the previous day. However, over the last couple years, this ETF was down 9.8% versus the S&P 500, which is up almost 40% over that same time frame. Is there an investment opportunity with Vietnam stocks?

Many American compan ies have had operations in Vietnam including Nike (NKE) and Intel (INTC). But there are several Vietnamese companies that trade in the US, according to the free list of Vietnamese stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Probably the best way to invest in Vietnam is through the Market Vectors Vietnam ETF. It trades at 14 times earnings and pays a dividend yield of 2.8%.

Vietnam Holding Ltd. (VNMHF) is a closed end investment fund managed by Vietnam Holding Asset Management Ltd., with offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. It  trades on both the Pink and the London Stock Exchange. They invest primarily in privatized State Owned Enterprises.

Another alternative is a bank in the United States that specializes in providing banking services to the Vietnamese business community in Southern California, called Saigon National Bank (SAGN).

Dot VN, Inc. (DTVI), the domain registrar for the Vietnam [.VN] country domain, is a San Diego company, which also has offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and has a deal with the Vietnam Internet Network Information Center to register and sell the Vietnam country code Top Level Domain, and works with numerous domain resellers. The company has been in business since 2001. It is a very low cap company.

To see all the Vietnamese stocks that trade in the United States, check out WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Author owns INTC. Many of the Vietnamese stocks described above are very low cap and should be considered very speculative.

By Stockerblog.com

Starbucks Opening in Vietnam: Is this the Next Big Asian Growth Country?

Starbucks (SBUX) has been expanding all over the world and will now open its first coffee shop in Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam has a fast growing economy. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the country spent almost $4.5 billion on Apple (AAPL) iPhones and other cells phone imports last year.

Vietnam is drawing the eyes of other companies. As an example, Siam Cement Group, based in Thailand, paid $240 million to purchase an 85% interest in Prime Group, one of the largest tile and brick manufacturers in Vietnam.

So if an American investor wants to participate in Vietnam's growth, there are some options available. According to the list of Vietnam stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are over a dozen companies that are either based in Vietnam or have large operations in Vietnam. Unfortunately, most of these companies are either very illiquid, have low market caps, or don't trade in the United States.

The best way to take advantage of the Vietnamese business expansion is through the Market Vectors Vietnam Exchange Traded Fund (VNM). The fund owns several Vietnam companies that would not be available to US investors, such as Vincom Joint Stock Company, Viet Nam Joint Stock Commercial Bank For Industry And Trade, Bao Viet Holdings, and the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, all of which make up about 30% of the portfolio.

The average price to earnings ratio is 10.6 and the average price to book value is 1.19. The fund pays a yield of 1.0%. Although the fund had a volatile year in 2012, it was actually up 22%. It started off the year well, spiking 4.7% on January 2.

For a free list of Vietnam stocks, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Disclosure: Author owns AAPL.

By STockerblog.com

Top Vietnam Stocks

Emerging markets, especially those in south Asia and southeast Asia, are now the hot item on Wall Street. Did you see the article on Thailand stocks last week, up over 30% in three months? Many investors think that Viet Nam may be the next China. The economy has grown significantly in Viet Nam over the last few years.

For example, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange and the Tokyo Stock Exchange have a partnership which involves sharing of investment and technology information. Nike (NKE) has been manufacturing in Vietnam for over 12 years. Intel (INTC) also has operations in Vietnam.

So how do you buy Vietnam stocks? You would need to have access to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, if you are interested in buying individual Vietnam stocks directly, such as:
Tienphong Plastic Joint Stock Company (HST:NTP) plastic pipe manufacturer
Ho Chi Minh City Infrastructure Investment (HCM:CII) infrastructure development
Phuong Nam Culture Joint Stock Corp. (HCM:PNC) media company
Tuong An Vegetable Oil Joint Stock Co (HCM:TAC) food products
Do Thanh Technology Corp. (HCM:DTT) plastic products

However, there are a couple other ways of investing in Vietnam stocks. The Vietnam Opportunity Fund (VTOPF.PK) (VOF.L) is one of the largest Vietnam closed end funds, and it trades on the London Stock Exchange and occasionally on the Pink Sheets in the United States. The fund is up about 4.9% over the last three months.

Vietnam Holding Ltd. (VNMHF.PK) (VNH.L) is another closed end investment fund managed by Vietnam Holding Asset Management Ltd., with offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. It also trades on both the Pink and the London Stock Exchange. They invest primarily in privatized State Owned Enterprises. The fund is up 14.3% over the last three months.

There is also a bank in the United States that specializes in providing banking services to the Vietnamese business community in Southern California, called Saigon National Bank (SAGN.OB). Latest reported earnings were negative.

Dot VN, Inc. (DTVI.OB), the domain registrar for the Vietnam [.VN] country domain, is a San Diego company, which also has offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and has a deal with the Vietnam Internet Network Information Center to register and sell the Vietnam country code Top Level Domain, and works with numerous domain resellers, such as VeriSign Inc. (VRSN) and Melbourne IT Ltd. (MLBEF.PK). The company has been in business since 2001. Latest reported earnings were negative.

An easier way to invest would be through the Market Vectors Vietnam ETF (VNM) which invests in various Vietnamese companies. During the last three months, the fund was down.

To see articles on other stocks from countries around the world, check out WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Author does not own any of the above. Many of the Vietnamese stocks described above are very low cap and should be considered very speculative.

By Stockerblog.com