HÀ NỘI — Shares suffered strong correction on Tuesday on the two stock exchanges after a three-week rally came under heavy profit-taking pressure.

The VN-Index on the HCM Stock Exchange slumped 1.72 per cent to close at 953.30 points. Việt Nam’s benchmark index climbed over 13.5 per cent in the past month.

Large-cap stocks experienced the heaviest selling pressure with 26 of the top 30 largest stocks by market value and liquidity declining, while only three advanced.

FLC Faros Construction (ROS) was the biggest loser, down 6.3 per cent.

Major shares with losses of over 2 per cent included Vinamilk (VNM), lender BIDV (BID), Vietinbank (CTG), IT giant FPT Corp (FPT), Bình Minh Plastic (BMP) and Tiền Phong Plastic (NTP).

Brewer Sabeco was also down 0.7 per cent after strong rallies over the past two weeks following the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s announcement of selling a majority of stakes in the company.

On the positive side, PV Gas (GAS), the biggest listed energy company, was among few gainers, rising 1.6 per cent to VNĐ82,700 (US$3.63) per share. Confectionery Kido Group (KDC) was also up 2 per cent and sugar maker Thành Thành Công – Biên Hòa JSC (SBT) climbed 6.3 per cent.

According to BIDV Securities Co, Tuesday’s downturn was a necessary correction in the context of the market climbing too fast. However, despite the index slump, liquidity continued to increase sharply, showing strong demand among investors.

About 265.5 million shares worth VNĐ7.34 trillion ($322 million) were traded on the southern market, down 1.7 per cent in trading volume but up 18 per cent in trading value compared to the previous session.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index dropped by a steeper 2.98 per cent to end at 113.23 points.

Nearly 83 million shares worth VNĐ1.14 trillion were traded on the northern bourse.

Trần Hải Yến, a stock analyst at Bảo Việt Securities Co, said the bearish session on Tuesday may have had a negative impact on the early session today but she believed this correction will be short-lived and the overall index will soon rebound.

Foreign investors were net buyers in HCM City’s market for a net value of VNĐ138.4 billion, but they were responsible for a small net sell value of VNĐ11 billion on the Hà Nội exchange. — VNS