HÀ NỘI — No turnaround happened on the stock market on Thursday as investors remained cautious about the market outlook.

On the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange, the VN-Index closed at 1,258.20 points, almost unchanged from the previous session.

Liquidity slightly decreased, totalling nearly 687 million shares worth more than VNĐ16.5 trillion (US$660 million).

The market condition was pessimistic, with 308 stocks losing, 150 gaining, and 84 closing flat.

By sectors, 16 out of 25 stock groups tracked by vietstock.vn lost value and only nine gained.

The banking sector, which is usually the market’s driver, was mixed. BIDV (BID) led the gainers with a growth of over 1.9 per cent, followed by Vietinbank (CTG), Eximbank (EIB), Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) and Hồ Chí Minh Development Bank (HDB) with gains of between 0.2 per cent and 1.1 per cent.

Securities, steel and retailing stocks were bright spots on Thursday, with major players in their sectors such as Saigon Securities Inc (SSI), Hồ Chí Minh Securities Corp (HCM), MB Securities (MBS), Hòa Phát Group (HPG), Hoa Sen Group (HSG), FPT Corp (FPT), Mobile World Investment (MWG) all rising.

According to Viet Dragon Securities Co (VDSC), the market was blocked at the 20-day moving average (MA20), around 1,268 points. Liquidity remained moderate indicating that support cash flow was in a cautious state and waiting.

Market analysts suggest investors be cautious and reassess the market condition while keeping their portfolios focused on risk mitigation.

Meanwhile, analysts at Bảo Việt Securities Co reckoned the prospects of Q1 business results from listed companies would support price movements for many stock groups amid deep declines.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index increased by 0.12 per cent to close the day at 239,07 points. It dropped 0.7 per cent on Wednesday.

Liquidity improved, however, with 78 million shares worth nearly VNĐ1.8 trillion being traded, up 18 per cent in volume and 24 per cent in value compared to the previous session.

Foreign investors returned to be net buyers in HCM City’s market with net value of VNĐ132 billion. Since early April, this sector net bought shares of Mobile World Investment (MWG) with total value of VNĐ685 billion and Military Bank (MBB) with net value of VNĐ427 billion. On the other side, they net sold Vinhomes (VHM) with net value of VNĐ1.5 trillion and Masan Group (MSN) with value of VNĐ5375 billion. — VNS