VN-Index posts eight-session high loss

The index stayed mostly in the red throughout the day and closed 10.9 points lower after gaining 6.8 points Wednesday.

Trading on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange rose marginally to VND16.46 trillion ($709.6 million), marking the fifth straight session the index closed with trading value above the 16-trillion mark.

The VN-30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 22 tickers fall, led by HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat with a 3.5 percent drop.

The ticker is now at the lowest since last February, having fallen over 35 percent since its peak in March.

STB of HCMC-based lender Sacombank lost 3.1 percent, and POW of Petrovietnam Gas ended its four-session gain streak with a 2.9 percent plunge.

Other losers included KDH of real estate developer Kinh Bac, down 2.4 percent, and PLX of fuel distributor Petrolimex, down 2.2 percent.

Eight blue chips bucked the downward trend, with PNJ of Phu Nhuan Jewelry gaining 5 percent to a seven-week high.

It was followed by GVR of Vietnam Rubber Group and BVH of insurance company Bao Viet, rising 2.6 and 2.3 percent, respectively.

Foreign investors were net sellers for the first time in five sessions to the tune of VND535.34 billion. They focused on selling HPG, GAS, and VIC of Vietnam’s largest private conglomerate Vingroup.

The HNX-Index at the Hanoi Stock Exchange, where mid and small caps list, was down 1.14 percent while the UPCoM-Index at the Unlisted Public Companies Market fell by 0.88 percent.