Vietnam stocks slip to 7-day low, bucking global trends

The index closed 6.80 points lower after dropping 0.06 points in the previous session.

Trading on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange decreased by 11% to VND11.54 trillion ($461 million).

The VN-30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 22 tickers fell.

GVR of Vietnam Rubber Group and POW of electricity producer Petrovietnam Power Corporation both declined by 2.2%.

MSN of conglomerate Masan Group lost 2% and BCM of Becamex Investment and Industrial Development closed 1.7% lower.

Five blue chips gained. VHM of property giant Vinhomes led with a 1.7% rise, followed by HDB of HDBank, up 1%.

Foreign investors were net buyers for the fifth straight session to the tune of VND120 billion, mainly buying VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk and FPT of IT giant FPT Corporation.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, and the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market both went down 0.50%.

Stock markets around the world were on firmer ground on Thursday, continuing to recover from an early August rout, on optimism that the U.S. Federal Reserve would start to cut interest rates soon.

U.S. stock futures rose, in a positive sign for the Wall Street open. European stocks firmed but trade was subdued due to a public holiday across many countries in the region, while Asian stocks also gained.

Japan’s blue-chip Nikkei rose 0.8%, lifted by data showing the economy rebounded strongly in the second quarter, while Chinese blue chips firmed almost 1% as lacklustre economic data boosted expectations for more stimulus.