Techcombank's teller talks to customers at its trading office. Shares of the lender dipped 1.8 per cent on Thursday, weighing on the market's downtrend. — Photo vietnamplus.vn

HÀ NỘI — Benchmark indices were mixed on Thursday, with broad-based selling pressure overwhelming upside stocks while foreign investors continued to net sell.

On the Hochiminh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index was down 13 points, or 0.7 per cent, to 1,840.7 points. Trading value on HoSE continued to retreat, dropping to just over VNĐ14.6 trillion (US$557 million), indicating liquidity remained on the low side as investors grew cautious.

The market breadth tilted clearly toward decliners, with 206 stocks falling and 92 advancing.

In the VN30 basket, the index also moved lower, dropping 11.33 points to 1,987.11 points. Up to 19 ticker symbols in the basket declined, while seven gained and four stayed flat. 

Correction pressure concentrated in multiple large-cap stocks. Vinhomes (VHM) was the biggest negative impact on the VN-Index, erasing 1.13 points from the benchmark. 

It was followed by Techcombank (TCB), Vietcombank (VCB), BIDV (BID), VPBank (VPB), Masan Consumer Corporation (CHM) and Vietinbank (CTG). All these stocks dipped in a range of 1.3-2.2 per cent. 

The index's losses were limited by gains in some big names, which were led by Petrovietnam Refining and Petrochemical Corporation (BSR). BSR shares soared nearly 5 per cent, contributing 1.4 points to the index. 

Other oil and gas stocks also performed well and supported the market. Of these, PV Oil (OIL) climbed 5.34 per cent, PV Gas (GAS) rose 2.94 per cent, PetroVietnam Chemical and Services (PVC) surged 3.94 per cent, and PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) jumped 2.45 per cent. 

In contrast, the HNX-Index on the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) closed higher at 306.67 points, up 6.28 points, or 2.09 per cent. 

Nearly 56.9 million shares were traded on the northern bourse, worth over VNĐ1 trillion.

Foreign investors extended their net selling trend, unloading nearly VNĐ452 billion on HoSE and VNĐ21 billion on HNX. 

The selling pressure was concentrated primarily on TCB, Gelex Group (GEX), Masan Group (MSN) and VPB.

VPBank Securities (VPX) said that capital has started shifting to stocks expected to record positive business results in the second quarter. However, it noted that liquidity is still only staying at a medium level, suggesting that capital has not yet returned strongly.

VPX's analysts forecast the market is likely to continue moving in a differentiated pattern, with opportunities focusing on stocks with individual catalysts such as second-quarter results, profit growth, or the ability to attract money flow.

The securities firm said investors should maintain a moderate equity allocation, prioritise holding stocks that are still in a positive trend and limit chasing buys when overall market liquidity has not clearly improved. — BIZHUB/VNS