Vietnam: Market struggles as big stocks diverge

VIETNAM, August 16 - HÀ NỘI — Shares were mixed on Tuesday but faced strong divergence, as selling force was cushioned by risk demand in the manufacturing and retail industries. 

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) slightly increased by 0.49 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 1,274.69 points. It was its third daily gain. 

The market’s breadth was negative with more stocks declining, while

liquidity also decreased over the previous session. Specifically, matching value on HoSE fell by 3.6 per cent to VNĐ13.5 trillion (US$575.2 million), equal to a matching volume of 570 million shares. 

The index extended rallies on the back of large-cap stocks, especially in the manufacturing sector, after being pulled back in the morning trade. The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 biggest stocks on the southern bourse, also settled higher with an increase of 1.31 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 1,295.1 points. 

In the VN30 basket, 12 stocks advanced, while 18 slid. 

Data compiled by vietstock.vn showed that Hoà Phát Group (HPG) led the uptrend, up 2.29 per cent, followed by Novaland (NVL), Petrolimex (PLX), Mobile World Investment Corporation (MWG), and Sabeco (SAB).

Supporting the bullish sentiment, Masan Group (MSN), Vinamilk (VNM) and CII Bridges & Roads Investment JSC (LGC) also posted positive performance. These stocks were up in a range of 0.4-6.67 per cent.

However, lingering selling pressure weighed on the market with many bank stocks facing a sell-off. Of which, BIDV (BID) lost the most, down 1.22 per cent. The trio stocks in the Vin family also plummeted on Tuesday, while big falls in the international market of oil prices dragged PV Gas (GAS) down. 

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index declined by 0.95 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 303.02 points. 

During the session, nearly 80.7 million shares were traded on the northern market, worth over VNĐ1.5 trillion. 

Foreign investors flocked into the southern bourse, with net value on both main exchanges of VNĐ527.17 billion. Of which, they net bought VNĐ530.43 billion and net sold VNĐ3.26 billion. VNS