HÀ NỘI — Both main Vietnamese stock indices lost ground Thursday amid profit-taking pressure on trade war fears.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, the VN-Index declined 1.7 per cent to close Thursday at 899.40 points. The southern market saw a brief recovery on Wednesday after a 6-per-cent loss in the first two sessions of the week.

Large caps led the downturn as 24 of the top 30 largest stocks by market value and liquidity slumped and only five advanced.

Bank and oil stocks were the biggest losers.

PV Gas (GAS) plummeted to the floor price, down 7 per cent to VNĐ74,000 (US$3.25) per share, extending the four-day loss to 16.4 per cent. Other oil-related firms such as PetroVietnam Technical Services (PVS), PetroVietnam Drilling Mud (PVC) and PetroVietnam Coating (PVB) dropped between 2.3 per cent and 5.1 per cent.

Big banks like Vietcombank (VCB), Vietinbank (CTG), BIDV (BID), VPBank (VPB) and Military Bank (MBB) plunged 4.6-6.5 per cent each.

“Profit-taking pressure strongly increased amid mounting trade war fears. With low market liquidity and bottom-fishing demand at present, the market is likely to decline in the next sessions,” said Trần Đức Anh, a stock analyst at Bảo Việt Securities Co.

About 143 million shares worth VNĐ3.67 trillion ($161 million) were traded in the HCM City’s market.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index also returned to declines, falling 3.6 per cent to end at 96.39 points.

The northern shares have suffered seven declining sessions out of the last eight trading days. The HNX-Index has lost over 14 per cent since June 25.

Major stock indices in the Asian market fell on Thursday amid rising trade tension between the United States and China. China said on Thursday it would retaliate with tariffs on US products as the US will officially impose tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese goods on Friday.

“In our view, the US government is only seeking advantages at the negotiating table, but these minor conflicts are still substantial risks that need to be carefully monitored in the near future,” Anh wrote in a Thursday report.

Recent moves of the US and China will determine whether a large-scale trade war will take place and have a direct impact on global stocks, Anh said.

Foreign investors were net sellers on HCM City’s bourse on Thursday for a total value of VNĐ232.4 billion, but they were net buyers in Hà Nội for a modest value of nearly VNĐ17 billion. — VNS