Small investors oppose expanding trading lot Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE)’s proposal to raise the minimum trading lot to 1,000 shares is receiving mixed opinions from market experts and investors. The proposal was initiated by newly-appointed General Director of HOSE Le Hai Tra as a solution to reduce system overloads which have troubled traders recently. A 1,000 minimum trading lot will limit the participation of small investors, while the stock market is moving towards fairness and equality, said a budding investor. “My friends and I, when joining the stock market, only have a few tens to several hundreds of millions of dong, raising the minimum trading lot to 1,000 shares will directly affect our investment capacity,” said individual investor Diep. “With expensive stocks, we may have to spend hundreds of millions of dong to buy the minimum 1,000 shares,” she said. According to Diep, the stock market has never had such a chance for growth. New cash flow into the market pushed liquidity to a record high level. However, the new proposal may not only prevent new investors from entering the market but also discourage existing investors. “The plan to raise the minimum trading lot to 1,000 shares could quickly reduce the number of orders delivered daily on HOSE. However, it will cause frustration among small investors who are directly affected by the plan as they think they are not protected,” said Do Bao Ngoc, Deputy General Director of Kien Thiet Securities Vietnam (CSI). “This plan, if in place, will affect the rapid development of the stock market under the current favourable conditions, one of which is great interest from global investors,” he said. “Under the new plan, the most affected are the investors whose trading accounts have VND1 billion or less,” said Nguyen Hoang Hai, Vice Chairman of Viet Nam Association of Financial Investors (VAFI) According to VAFI statistics, investors whose trading accounts have VND500 million or less …
Net profit vs gross profit
Swedish initiative invites men to talk about gender equality
The Embassy of Sweden Hanoi has just introduced "globalguytalk" initiative in Vietnam, on the International women's day 2021. The aim is to start conversations between men that can influence attitudes and increase gender equality. Swedish Ambassador Ann Måwe speaks at the event "In collaboration between the non-profit foundation Make Equal, the Swedish Institute “guy dinner” now goes international and becomes #globalguytalk. It is exciting to launch it in Vietnam today. The aim is to give men the chance to participate in conversations about how norms and expectations form them, and how they can contribute to creating a more equal society", said Swedish Ambassador Ann Måwe at the opening of the event on March 8 in Hanoi. "The overall objective of gender equality is a society in which women and men enjoy the same opportunities, rights, and obligations in all spheres of life. One part of achieving that is for men to understand their chance to be a part of positive change and to reflect on their own situation. My belief is that it is necessary for a healthy family relationship that men talk to each other and overcome prevailing patriarchal mentalities of not sharing emotions", Ambassador Måwe added. #globalguytalk can be seen as a follow-up to the highly appreciated photo exhibition Swedish Dads by photographer Johan Bävman – shown in over 70 countries worldwide including Vietnam. This inspired quite a few similar initiatives in Vietnam during the last few years including Vietnamese Dads and Equal Families. With #globalguytalk we wish to build on the experiences from Swedish Dads – stepping up the work with men and boys in support of a gender equal society. The first #globalguytalk in Vietnam is arranged in cooperation with the Vietnamese Women Museum. Nguyen Hai Van, Director of the Vietnam Women's Museum said "Besides preserving and introducing the heritage of Vietnamese women to the public at home and abroad, the …
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Pham Thi Thu Diep – Leading the way
Two months into the role of country manager in Vietnam for such a big company, and 10 years into your IBM journey, what are your thoughts on the role of women in such a position? Pham Thi Thu Diep was appointed as the first female country general manager in Vietnam of IBM, the multinational technology company headquartered in New York. I have received the greatest support from the Vietnam team as well as from my regional colleagues as we transform to adapt to the new business environment. I feel fortunate that there are many programmes in IBM that will groom female leaders to hold significant positions in the company. My journey in the last 10 years as a female leader has been meaningful and fulfilling. But it is not so good across the board for women leaders. The latest IBM Institute for Business Value study on women in leadership in the workplace reveals that organisations are losing their footing in the effort to achieve gender equality in the global workforce, spurred in part by the pandemic. We are at a crossroads where failure to take immediate and bold action will have long-term business and societal repercussions. The start of 2020’s difficulties brought clearly to light the incredible pressures working women face both at home and in their careers. But one year later, leaders’ recognition of the challenge hasn’t turned it into a priority. IBM’s study shows gender equality is still not a top 10 business priority for 70 per cent of organisations, and optimism about the likelihood of progress is fading among both women and men. Are there any specific factors to address on the point that the pandemic has negatively affected working women? The massive shift to remote work brought renewed attention to the persistent challenges that women face as they work to advance their careers, during the workday and from the “second shift” of family responsibilities that many women pull at home after their day jobs end. C-Suite leaders widely …