VN Index loses gains in late selling
VN Index loses gains in late selling
Shares lost most of the value gained in yesterday's morning session as increased investor selling in the afternoon eroded confidence in the ongoing rally.
The benchmark VN-Index, the measure of total 310 stocks on the HCM Stock Exchange, managed to close higher for the first time in the last five days. It inched up 0.1 per cent to close at 631.9 points.
On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index extended losses to four days in a row, down 0.1 per cent to end the day at 81.2 points.
"Selling pressure continued to increase while declining liquidity showed investor sentiment remained pessimistic," analysts of Maritime Securities Co wrote in a report.The VN-Index gained over 1.2 per cent in the morning before pushing down again in afternoon, particularly in large-cap stocks like property developers VinGroup (VIC) and FLC Group (FLC), lender BIDV (BID) and steelmaker Hoa Phat Group (HPG).
Some stocks bucked the trend and supported the market.
Vietcombank (VCB), Viet Nam's largest bank by total assets, jumped over 3 per cent. Dairy giant Vinamilk (VNM) increased 1.3 per cent. Oil and gas stocks like PV Gas (GAS), PetroVietnam Drilling and Wells Service (PVD), PetroVietnam Drilling Mud (PVC) and PetroVietnam Technical Services (PVS) maintained rises of between 1 and 2 per cent.
WTI Oil prices rose more than 3 per cent overnight yesterday to reach above US$40 per barrel again, after data showed that American fuel supplies last week fell more sharply than expected.
Le Duc Khanh, head of investment strategy at MSI Securities, said the market could see a downward correction in the near future when the first-half earnings prospect runs out of steam and the market appears to lack support information in August.
"The market will continue to adjust at least in the first week of August. It could bottom out in the mid month and will recover," Khanh said.
Liquidity remained low with a total of over 153 million shares worth a combined VND2.4 trillion ($107 million) traded on the two exchanges.
Foreign investors continued buy in, picking up shares worth a net buy of nearly VND74 billion yesterday in the two markets. They bought a total net value of more than VND300 billion in the last three sessions.
