Low crude keeps stocks down

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Photo captured of screens at Vietcombank Securities Company. Vietcombank, listed as VCB on the HCM Stock Exchange, ended flat yesterday. - VNS Photo Trương Vị.

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange inched down 0.1 per cent to end at 648.59 points. The southern market index has fallen 3.7 per cent in the past six sessions.

The HNX Index on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange dropped 0.6 per cent to close at 83.52 points. The northern market index has decreased by 4.1 per cent in the last six days.

The energy sector weighed on investors’ sentiment yesterday after oil prices declined for a fourth trading day.

US crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) lost 0.9 per cent to trade at US$42.74 a barrel and London-traded Brent crude edged down 0.5 per cent to trade at $44.49 a barrel, totalling a four-session fall of 4.9 per cent and 5.7 per cent, respectively.

The largest energy stocks all declined. PetroVietnam Gas Corp (GAS) plunged 4.8 per cent, while the others such as PetroVietnam Mud Drilling Corp (PVC) and PetroVietnam Technical Services Corp (PVS) fell between 1.8 per cent and 3 per cent.

Other large-cap stocks on the two local exchanges yesterday continued to decline, including consumer goods producer Masan Group (MSN), Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Việt Nam (BID), Tiền Phong Plastic JSC (NTP) and Asia Commercial Bank (ACB).

MSN was down 0.7 per cent, BID slid 0.6 per cent, NTP fell slightly by 0.3 per cent and ACB dropped 1.1 per cent.

“Investors remained cautious on the market’s current slowdown and chose to stay off trading,” Sài Gòn-Hà Nội Securities Corp (SHS) wrote in its daily report.

Weak investor sentiment resulted in low trading liquidity. Local exchanges had more than 143 million shares in trading worth VND2.4 trillion ($106.7 million), a quarter lower in value from last week’s daily trading figures.

Investors also turned their focus on some listed companies that have given positive news on their business, SHS said. Those firms are Việt Nam Dairy Products JSC (VNM), steel producer Hòa Phát Group (HPG) and fish exporter Hùng Vương Corp (HVG).

VNM rose 1.9 per cent after foreign investors purchased half of the stocks that were traded on the market. VNM last week announced it lifted the limit of ownership for foreign investors.

VN stocks mixed, energy sector lifts northern market Vietnamese shares ended mixed in the early session, even as energy stocks continued to lift investor confidence.

HPG jumped 3.4 per cent and HVG surged 6.9 per cent after the two companies reported higher year-on-year profits for the first half of this year.