The canned milk production line of Vinamilk in Cần Thơ City. The stock of the dairy producer led the decliners on Monday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The stock market faced increased selling pressure on the last Monday of August, leading to significant losses in major stocks, while foreign investors extended their net selling.

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) closed the day at 1,280.02 points, down 5.3 points or 0.41 per cent.

On the southern bourse, the market breadth was negative, with 203 stocks declining, while 109 increased and 53 ended flat. Liquidity improved significantly to VNĐ18.3 trillion (US$735.2 million), an increase of 8.9 per cent from the previous session.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation on the HoSE, also dropped 2.55 points or 0.19 per cent, to 1,318.6 points. The number of decliners surpassed gainers in the VN30 basket by 21 to 6, while three stocks remained flat.

Large-cap stocks in the manufacturing and banking sectors led the market's downturn, with Việt Nam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (VNM) posting the biggest fall in market capitalisation, down 2 per cent, contributing to a decrease of more than 0.75 points in the VN-Index.

It was followed by Masan Group Corporation (MSN), whose shares fell by 2.18 per cent, reducing the VN-Index by more than 0.58 points.

Losses were mitigated by gains in some pillar stocks, led by Vin Group stocks. Vinhomes JSC (VHM) increased by 1.89 per cent, Vingroup Joint Stock Company (VIC) rose by 1.44 per cent, and Vincom Retail Joint Stock Company (VRE) gained 1.79 per cent.

The gains continued with Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPB), which rose 1.33 per cent and Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TCB), which increased by 0.45 per cent.

According to experts from Việt Dragon Securities, the rise in liquidity compared to the previous session indicates that market support efforts are ongoing as supply gradually increases. Although there has not been a clear distribution day, the market's hesitation suggests a retest of the 1,275-point resistance level.

The market is expected to continue receiving support as it retreats, with the potential to reach the 1,305-point peak in the near future. Therefore, investors may consider short-term buying opportunities during market adjustments, particularly in stocks showing positive performance from strong support levels.

The Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX) index also finished slightly lower on Monday, down 0.46 per cent to 238.97 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 continued their selling spree, with a net sale of over VNĐ389 billion on the HoSE. — VNS