Vietnam's benchmark VN-Index rallies on positive US-China deal

VN-Index surged by 15.96 points, or 1.26%, to 1,283.26 on Monday following positive information from the trade talks between the two world powers - the U.S. and China.

The trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), which the index represents, surged by 25% to VND21.64 trillion ($833.4 million), hitting two-week high.

There were 157 stocks gaining, 123 declining and 67 going flat.

The VN-30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 27 tickers gained.

TCB of Techcombank saw the biggest jump of 6.52% to VND29,400 ($1.13), the highest level since its listing in 2018. It was followed by TPB of TPBank (up 4.98%) and GVR of Vietnam Rubber Group (up 4.88%).

Two blue chips fell, namely MSN of conglomerate Masan Group and HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group.

Foreign investors were net sellers to the tune of over VND293 billion ($11.28 million) on the HoSE. They mainly net sold VCB of state-controlled Vietcombank and HPG.

The HNX-Index on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, rose 1.71% to 216.04 points, while the UPCoM-Index on the Unlisted Public Companies Market (UPCoM) went up 0.2% to 93.59.

Earlier on the day, the U.S. and China agreed to temporarily suspend most tariffs on each other’s goods in a move that shows a major thawing of trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies.

The trade agreement means that “reciprocal” tariffs between both countries will be cut from 125% to 10%. The U.S.′s 20% duties on Chinese imports relating to fentanyl will remain in place, meaning total tariffs on China stand at 30%.

The breakthrough comes after the U.S. and China trade representatives held high-stakes talks in Switzerland over the weekend.

Investors worldwide were buoyed on Monday by news of the tariff reprieve. Nasdaq futures gained 3.6%, S&P 500 futures was higher by 2.8%, and the Dow Jones went up by nearly 1,000 points, or 2.3%.

Across the ocean, Asia-Pacific markets closed in positive territory. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged 2.98% to close at 23,549.46 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index jumped 5.16% to 5,447.35, its highest level since March 27.

Mainland China's CSI 300 Index rose 1.16%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended the day up 0.38%. Other major markets such as South Korea and Australia also posted gains.