Market Insider – Vietnam’s equity market experienced its lowest liquidity in two months as cautious investor sentiment continued to weigh on trading activity. Despite the VN-Index closing higher, overall market turnover dropped to under VND 30 trillion ($1.2 billion), marking the weakest session since July.
Ahead of today’s session, analysts had warned that the late rebound in the previous trading day was unlikely to restore investor confidence. The forecast proved accurate as buying interest remained subdued, keeping cash inflows muted.
By the end of the morning session, Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) liquidity had reached less than VND 13 trillion, far below the VND 20 trillion typically seen during more active periods. The cautious mood persisted into the afternoon, with total matched orders for the day amounting to just 990 million shares, equivalent to VND 29.4 trillion.
Index Performance
The weak inflows kept the VN-Index trading in a narrow range with several intraday reversals. The benchmark eventually closed at 1,643 points, up nearly 6 points from the previous session. The VN30 Index, tracking the largest-cap stocks, also posted a modest gain of just over 3 points.
However, the market displayed what local investors call a “green shell, red core” pattern — where indices edge higher but declining stocks outnumber gainers. Sector performance remained highly divergent.
Sector Highlights
- Banking: Large-cap lenders including CTG, VCB, TCB, MBB, and SHB rose more than 1%, providing the main support to the market. In contrast, mid- and small-cap peers such as MSB, EIB, VIB, and TPB ended in negative territory.
- Securities: SSI, VIX, and BSI advanced, lifting sentiment in the brokerage group, while VDS, VCI, and VND slipped 1–2%.
- Real Estate: Vingroup stocks (VIC, VHM, VRE) posted solid gains and ranked among the top contributors to the VN-Index’s rise. Conversely, NVL, HDG, and LDG each fell over 2%.
Only four stocks achieved liquidity above VND 1 trillion during the session: SSI, HPG, VIX, and TCB.
Foreign Investors Turn Aggressive Sellers
Foreign investors were net sellers for the session, offloading shares worth over VND 4.8 trillion against just VND 1.86 trillion in purchases — resulting in a net sell value exceeding VND 2.9 trillion. Steelmaker HPG saw the heaviest foreign selling pressure, with nearly 12 million shares dumped. NVL, MBB, and TCB also faced significant outflows.
This cautious trading environment underscores investor hesitancy amid weak inflows, highlighting the importance of monitoring foreign capital movements, sectoral divergence, and liquidity trends as key drivers of Vietnam’s equity market performance in the weeks ahead.
