Scandal-hit market still in free fall
Scandal-hit market still in free fall
Investor caution and weak demand for exchange-traded funds drove down the value of shares and the volume of trades last week on both of the nation's stock exchanges.
Increasing pessimism among the investor community and weak demand by foreign investors contributed to the market plunge last week, wrote analysts of the financial website vietstock.vn.
The reheating of inflation in September, which rose 2.2 per cent over August, added to the worries of investors already concerned over the prosecution of former executives of Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) and what they suggested about the stability of the nation's banking system and the markets, they said.
On the HCM City Stock Exchange, the VN-Index declined by 0.73 per cent over the course of the week to conclude Friday's session at 392.57 points. Volume fell 40 per cent from the previous week's levels, averaging just 28.2 million shares and a value of just VND489.6 billion (US$23.3 million) per session.
Large-cap shares led the market downturn. Financial conglomerate Ocean Group (OGC), real estate developer Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAG), Song Da Urban & Industrial Zone Investment and Development (SJS) and steelmaker Hoa Phat Group (HPG) were the biggest decliners, with losses from 11.5-13.8 per cent.
Commercial baker Kinh Do (KDC) was among few gainers, posting a cumulative gain of 10.7 per cent on the strength of positive earnings reported in the third quarter. The company reported sales of mooncakes this Mid-Autumn Festival surpassed targets by 15 per cent, and KDC shares closed on Friday at VND28,000.
On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index also fell by 2.19 per cent from the previous Friday's close to end last week's trades at 55.47 points. Already meagre volumes dropped by another 36 per cent from the prior week to an average of only 19.5 million shares per day, worth an average of VND147 billion ($7 million).
Over half of all shares on the HCM City bourse are now trading below their par value of VND10,000 a share, a figure that has reached as high as 72 per cent on the Ha Noi exchange.
Shares of Viet Nam Container Shipping Co (VSG) were the cheapest on the HCM City market, worth just VND1,200 ($0.06) a share, while the lowest-priced share in the history of Viet Nam's stock market was SME Securities Co (SME), quoted on the Ha Noi board at just VND200 ($0.01) per share.
SME is being forced to delist its shares by October 26 due to significant violations of disclosure regulations.
Foreign investors concluded last week as net sellers in HCM City by a margin of VND304.8 billion ($14.5 million), but they were net buyers in Ha Noi, picking up shares worth a net of VND9.8 billion ($467,000).
vietnamnews
