HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese shares were volatile and closed mixed yesterday as investors remained cautious ahead of the vote to decide Britain’s membership in the European Union (EU).

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange edged down 0.3 per cent to finish at 626.41 points after rising 1.4 per cent in the previous two sessions.

 “Investor confidence was low yesterday as investors worried about possible negative impacts on Việt Nam’s economy in case Britain decides to leave the European Union this Thursday,” Maritime Securities Corp (MSI) wrote in its daily report.

Investors concerned over the decline of major stock markets may switch to other safer financial assets, MSI said.

Most listed companies on Việt Nam’s stock markets will suffer if the UK withdraws from the EU as they will face more competition in selling products in Britain and Europe, while a stronger US dollar and Japanese yen will cost local companies more to import raw materials from overseas suppliers, MSI said.

Lower investor confidence pulled blue chips on the southern exchange down from Tuesday’s gains, including insurer Bảo Việt Holdings (BVH), property developer and retail firm Vingroup JSC (VIC), Vietcombank (VCB), Vietinbank (CTG) and the Bank for Investment and Development of Việt Nam (BID).

BVH lost 0.8 per cent, VIC fell 2.8 per cent, VCB edged down 0.4 per cent, and CTG and BID dropped 0.6 per cent each.

Brokerage companies also helped drive the southern market down. Sài Gòn Securities Inc (SSI) was down 0.5 per cent and HCM City Securities Corp (HCM) slid 0.3 per cent.

Meanwhile, the HNX Index on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange rose 0.4 per cent to end at 84.81 points, rallying 1.1 per cent in three trading days.

The northern market index received strong support from Vietnam Construction and Import-Export JSC (VCG), which surged 9.2 per cent.

Additionally, sugar producers such as Kon Tum Sugar JSC (KTS) and Sơn La Sugar JSC (SLS) continued to benefit from higher sugar price. KTS jumped 9.9 per cent and SLS rose sharply by 6.5 per cent.

Energy stocks bolstered investor confidence as oil prices bounced back from Tuesday’s losses. London-traded Brent crude edged up 0.3 per cent to trade at US$50.75 a barrel.

Lower investor confidence also pulled market liquidity down significantly. Investors on both local exchanges traded nearly 165.8 million shares worth VNĐ2.89 trillion ($128.5 million), a decrease of 17 per cent from Tuesday’s trading value. — VNS