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VN-Index plunges below 400
Ho Chi Minh City stocks continued their downward spiral Thursday as investors remained on the sidelines, petrified by the global financial meltdown.
They sold heavily soon after the opening bell, sending the VN-Index 2.83 percent lower.
But it bounced back in the second session, the continuous matching session, thanks to rallies by large caps like dairy maker Vinamilk, Pha Lai Thermal Power and PetroVietnam Fertilizer and Chemical Joint Stock Co.
But for the rest of the trading day, there was again heavy selling, sending share prices back into the red.
The VN-Index lost 3.65 points, or 0.91 percent, to close at 397.68.
“Investors are panicked by the current movement in the world financial markets, and many of them, including big institutions, are holding back on their trading,” Nguyen Lam Dung, chief executive officer of Hanoi-based Habubank
Securities, the brokerage unit of Hanoi Building Commercial Joint-Stock Bank, said.
“We may experience a recession in the global economy.
Governments are trying different measures to stop that from happening, and any time such a measure is taken, it may help stock markets improve a little bit.”
Dung expected the market to remain extremely volatile.
A broker at a HCMC-based brokerage, who wished not to be named, told Thanh Nien Daily that the market’s performance showed some positive signs.
“Heavy buying in the second session proved many investors consider slumps in prices as opportunities to buy shares in well-run firms at low prices,” he said.
“But many reacted anxiously to the market’s recent falls, and the market continued to retreat today. Today’s slight fall shows the market is set to rebound in the coming days.”
Figures from the State Securities Commission’s website showed trading volumes were up 24.7 percent at 21.4 million shares.
Of the index’s 164 members, 103 fell and 39 gained.
Foreign investors sold heavily, notching up a net negative figure of VND96.4 billion (US$5.8 million).
Saigon Securities Inc., software developer FPT Corp., steel maker Hoa Phat Group, telecommunication material supplier Sacom and Pha Lai Thermal Power were among stocks they dumped the most.
Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank, the exchange’s only listed lender, remained the most active stock by volume, with more than 2.8 million shares changing hands.
The HCMC-based bank edged up by VND100, or 0.47 percent, to close at VND21,200.
Binh Duong PP Pack Making Joint Stock Co., which rose VND600, or 5 percent, to finish at VND12,600, was the day’s best performer.
Paint maker Dong Nai was the biggest loser, plummeting 5 percent to close at VND20,900.
Thanhnien
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