Blue-chips drag down share prices

A production line at the Casumina rubber company, whose shares continued to fall rapidly, losing 2.5 per cent yesterday. - VNA/VNS Photo Danh Lam

On the HCM City Stock Exchange, the benchmark VN-Index slid by 0.02 per cent to 604.98 points. Trading value and volume fell below Thursday's level, reaching VND2.6 trillion (US$122.6 million) and 143.9 million shares.

Among the 30 largest stocks led by capitalisation and liquidity, rubber companies, Casumina (CSM) and Da Nang Rubber (DRC) continued to fall rapidly, losing 2.5 per cent and 3.2 per cent, respectively. The shares of 14 other companies likewise lost their reference prices.

Only eight of the blue chips finished in the green. The index fell by 0.58 per cent and closed at 649.63 points.

Property developers FLC Group (FLC), Kinh Bac (KBC), Tan Tao (ITA) and Sacom (SAM), along with financial stock Ocean Group (OGC) and Viet-Han Investment and Manufacturing (VHG), were the most active codes with more than 5.3 million shares exchanged.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index inched down by 0.1 per cent to 88.56 points. The HNX30 Index, composed of the exchange's top shares, also shed 0.66 per cent to 181.14 points over the slump of Bao Viet Securities (BVS), along with Kim Long Securities (KLS), PetroVietnam Technical Services (PVS), An Phat Plastic and Green Environment (AAA).

Around 77 million shares worth nearly VND989.5 billion ($46.6 million) changed hands.

The trading of foreign investors improved over that of Thursday's session, with a net buying value of VND25.56 billion ($1.2 million) in Ha Noi and a net sale of just VND9.3 billion ($438,600) in HCM City, a 97-per cent fall.

In the short term, investors could pay attention to companies that are expected to report positive business results such as brokerages, realty and import-export companies, said Tran Duc Anh of Bao Viet Securities Company.

Money was shifted to securities companies such as Sai Gon Securities (SSI) and HCM City Securities (HCM). "Investors turned their targets too quickly, and this does not support a sustainable rise," commented FPT Securities analysts.