Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Tradingon the Vietnamese securities market was essential and would not bedisrupted under any circumstances during the fight against COVID-19, the StateSecurities Commission (SSC) said on March 31.

Trading activitieswould be thorough and secure, the agency said in a statement, adding thatsecurities trading was one of the essential services regulated by the PrimeMinister’s Directive 16 dated March 31 to enhance the fight against the spreadof the coronavirus.

Directive 16 was issued on March31 to launch a 15-day nationwide social distancing order, starting from 0:00 on April 1, as the Government advisedpeople to stop travelling and grouping to prevent the coronavirus fromspreading.

The SSC also asked the twostock exchanges, the Vietnam Securities Depository (VSD), securities companies,fund management firms, and other market members to keep innovating andusing modern technologies to adapt to comply with the Government’srequest.

Stock exchanges, marketregulators, securities companies and fund management firms were also requiredto be prepared for any possible scenarios during the COVID-19 fight.

They were also asked to takedrastic measures to make sure employees, investors and customers were safe andnot infected by the virus.

Since January-end, thebenchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange has lost 33.2 percent, andbillions of dollars have been wiped off the market’s total capitalisationas the country struggles with the spread of the coronavirus.

A number of securitiescompanies have switched to online working mode and suspended direct contactbetween their employees and customers to prevent a potential virus breakout./.