At a Sacombank transaction office. The bank's STB shares led the gainers on a bearish market day. — Photo courtesy of Sacombank

HÀ NỘI — The stock market started the new week with a slight decrease, extending the VN-Index's losing streak to a fourth consecutive day, while liquidity fell to its lowest level in three weeks.

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) closed the day at 1,269.93 points, down 0.67 points, or 0.05 per cent.

On the southern bourse, market breadth was negative, with 156 stocks declining, 144 advancing and 65 remaining unchanged. Liquidity dropped to VNĐ11.8 trillion (US$477 million), marking a 13.8 per cent decrease compared to the previous session and its lowest level in three weeks.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the top 30 stocks by market capitalisation on the HoSE, also fell by 0.73 points, or 0.05 per cent, to close at 1,335.48 points. In the VN30 basket, 16 stocks declined, 11 advanced and three remained unchanged.

Leading the market’s downturn were large-cap stocks in the financial and manufacturing sectors, with the Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (VNM) posting the steepest decline in market capitalisation, dropping 2.04 per cent and contributing nearly 0.7 points to the VN-Index's overall decrease.

This was followed by the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB), which declined by 0.33 per cent, and Vinhomes JSC (VHM), which fell by 0.72 per cent.

However, the market's losses were mitigated by gains in some key stocks, led by Sài Gòn Thương Tín Commercial Joint Stock Bank (STB), which rose by 2.11 per cent, contributing over 0.3 points to the VN-Index.

Experts from the Việt Dragon Securities noted: "The market continued its downtrend from the previous session, gradually retreating towards the MA(20) line, around the 1,270-point region. Liquidity decreased compared to the prior session, indicating that support cash flow is cautious under supply pressure. Currently, the market lacks clear support signals, but the 1,260- to 1,270-point range may act as a buffer to slow the market's decline. The market is likely to experience fluctuations in the near term to gauge supply and demand."

"Therefore, investors should closely observe market movements at the support level to assess the market's condition. It is advisable to maintain a reasonable portfolio allocation and use rebounds as an opportunity to adjust portfolios for risk mitigation," they added.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also dropped by 0.09 per cent, closing at 232.47 points.

During the session, a total volume of nearly 61 million shares worth more than VNĐ1.1 trillion was traded on the northern bourse.

Foreign investors extended their net selling trend, with net sales amounting to over VNĐ337 billion on the HoSE. — VNS