At Techcombank's headquarters in Hà Nội City. The bank's shares led the downward trend on Thursday. — Photo Techcombank.com

HÀ NỘI — The stock market experienced increased selling pressure on Thursday, with major stocks suffering significant losses as the VN-Index broke its two-day rising streak, while foreign investors extended their net selling.

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) finished the day at 1,208.32 points, down 7.56 points, or 0.62 per cent.

On the southern bourse, the breadth was negative as 172 stocks declined, while 141 increased and 55 ended flat. Liquidity improved significantly to VNĐ16.7 trillion (US$660.7 million), an increase of 18 per cent from the previous session.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 biggest stocks on HoSE by market capitalisation, also dropped 10.27 points or 0.82 per cent, to 1,243.31 points. The number of decliners surpassed gainers in the VN30 basket by 19 to seven, while four stocks ended flat.

Large-cap stocks in the manufacturing and banking sectors led the market's downturn, with Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TCB) posting the biggest fall in market capitalisation of 4.36 per cent, contributing to a decrease of more than 1.5 points in the VN-Index. Notably, this bank's shares have not increased in four consecutive trading sessions.

It was followed by Vietnam Airlines JSC (HVN), whose shares returned to their familiar floor price drop, decreasing by 6.99 per cent, reducing the VN-Index by more than 0.7 points.

Manufacturing stocks also performed poorly on Thursday. Hòa Phát Group JSC (HPG) and Vietnam Rubber Group - Joint Stock Company (GVR) were notable, with their shares falling by 1.73 and two per cent, respectively.

Losses were mitigated by gains in some pillar stocks, led by PetroVietnam Gas Joint Stock Corporation (GAS). Shares of the gas distributor rose by 2.9 per cent, contributing more than 1.3 points to the VN-Index gain.

It was followed by Masan Group Corporation (MSN), which rose by 2.05 per cent and Vinhomes JSC (VHM), which increased by 1.08 per cent.

According to experts from Viet Dragon Securities, liquidity remains low, indicating that the supply is temporarily short and not exerting significant pressure on the market.

However, overall caution persists in the market when it rises due to the negative impact of the recent sharp decline. The 1,220-point level is expected to continue exerting supply pressure on the market in the near future, and the risk of a downturn remains. Therefore, investors should remain cautious in the face of market instability and avoid chasing rising prices. They should also consider taking profits or restructuring their portfolios during market recoveries to minimise risk.

The Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX) index also finished lower on Thursday, declining by 0.54 per cent to 226.73 points.

During the session, more than VNĐ1.2 trillion worth of shares were traded, equivalent to a trading volume of over 65 million shares on the northern bourse.

Foreign investors extended their net selling spree, with net sales of over VNĐ1.1 trillion on the HoSE. — VNS