Investors Shunning Vietnam Send Stocks to Lowest in 14 Months

(Bloomberg) -- Vietnamese stocks fell, with the benchmark index hitting its lowest level since November 2017, as investors stayed on the sidelines after getting burned in 2018.

The VN Index extended losses in the afternoon session, falling as much as 2.2 percent. It closed down 1.5 percent after slipping 0.1 percent on Wednesday. The gauge capped losses at 9.3 percent in 2018, battered by concern over the trade war between the U.S. and China. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 16 percent last year, while the S&P 500 Index fell 6.2 percent.

“Investors are very cautious and many of them are staying on the sideline,” said Phuong Hoang, head of institutional research and investment advisory at Saigon Securities Services.

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.