A VietinBank office under the Hai Bà Trưng branch in Hà Nội. CTG shares of the lender fell sharply on Wednesday, contributing to the continued decline of the VN-Index. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam’s stock market suffered another sharp drop on Wednesday, as the VN-Index lost over 38 points to fall below the psychological 1,100-point mark. Although foreign investors showed early signs of bottom-fishing, market sentiment remains fragile due to sustained selling pressure and broader economic concerns.

At the close of trading on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index fell by 38.49 points, or 3.4 per cent, to 1,094.3 points.

Market breadth was overwhelmingly negative, with only 66 gainers compared to 272 losers. Liquidity improved notably, with trading value rising 28 per cent from the previous session to approximately VNĐ32.4 trillion (US$1.25 billion).

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 largest capitalised stocks, also declined sharply by 28.83 points, or 2.41 per cent, to 1,168.68 points. Among the VN30 basket, only seven stocks advanced while 23 declined.

Large-cap blue chips continued to lead the downturn. Vietcombank (VCB) posted the steepest loss, plunging 5.91 per cent and erasing more than 6.2 points from the VN-Index. VietinBank (CTG) also had a poor performance, falling 6.11 per cent and dragging the index down by over 2.7 points.

Some major stocks, however, helped cushion the decline. Vingroup Joint Stock Company (VIC) rose by 3.45 per cent, contributing over 1.8 points to the benchmark, while Vinhomes JSC (VHM) gained 3.19 per cent, adding nearly 1.6 points.

According to analysts at Saigon – Hanoi Securities (SHS): “In the short term, the sudden imposition of widespread and elevated tariffs is viewed as a 'black swan' event for the financial markets, triggering some of the steepest single-session losses in history. The VN-Index has now dropped around 15 per cent from its recent peak of 1,340 points and is under pressure to retest the 1,000–1,100-point range — a level last seen at the end of 2022 and 2023.”

SHS noted that margin call-induced selling is increasingly widespread across multiple stock groups, many of which have declined 40–60 per cent from their peaks. “We expect the market to see a technical rebound between the 1,020 and 1,080-point levels, once forced selling subsides, particularly among export-related sectors.

“The total market capitalisation currently stands at approximately US$252 billion, and many stocks are trading at relatively attractive valuations compared to their fundamentals,” SHS added.

Investors are advised to maintain a balanced portfolio and prioritise risk management under the current conditions. “We recommend selectively identifying long-term investment opportunities in fundamentally strong, leading companies within key growth sectors,” SHS said.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also tumbled by 8.46 points, or 4.21 per cent, to close at 192.58 points. Trading value on the northern bourse exceeded VNĐ1.9 trillion, with more than 143 million shares traded.

Notably, foreign investors turned net buyers for the first time in several sessions, purchasing a net VNĐ253 billion worth of shares on the HoSE and nearly VNĐ70 billion on the HNX. — VNS