Saigon Beer listing to spur surging Vietnam stock market

Successful listing: Bottles of beer move along a production line at a Sabeco factory in Hanoi. Company shares rose 20 in the trading debut on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange yesterday. – Reuters

HANOI: Vietnam’s benchmark stock index, already the best performer in South-East Asia in the past year, is getting another boost from the listing of Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange.

The shares rose 20% in the trading debut yesterday. The stock rose by the limit to 132,000 dong (US$5.81) apiece at the close. That values Saigon Beer at US$3.7bil, making it the second-largest consumer company after Vietnam Dairy Products JSC on the exchange and fifth-largest constituent overall. The listing will increase the size and liquidity of the US$59bil VN-Index, which tracks all the companies on the bourse and is set for a fifth year of gains.