Hoà Phát Group's warehouse. The gain of 1.18 per cent of the company shares on Friday helped limit the loss of the VN-Index. — Photo hoaphat.com.vn

HÀ NỘI — The market benchmark VN-Index finished lower on Friday as blue-chip stocks faced a sell-off after the hitting historic peak of 1,200 points in the previous session. 

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) fell 6.89 points, equivalent to 0.57 per cent, to 1,194.05 points. However, the index did not fluctuate much from the morning session as the overload issues on HoSE occurred again.

Selling pressure covered the market sentiment since it opened with many large-cap stocks across all sectors posting big losses. The index closed the morning session at 1,194.39 points.

The index's moves were widely forecast by analysts from securities firms. 

"The VN-Index is expected to enter a strong fluctuation period, but in a positive way, in the short-term after breaking the historic high of 1,200 points. However, the market might be influenced by portfolio restructuring activities from ETFs," Trần Xuân Bách, a stock analyst from Bảo Việt Securities Co., said.

FTSE ETF and V.N.M ETF restructured their portfolios on the last trading day of the week. 

"The index might face corrections in the next session to test the territory of 1,185 - 1,190 points before rebounding."

On the technical front, the VN-Index successfully broke the 1,200 point-level. However, investors need to be cautious as the market might need to test this level again and the next few sessions might see corrections to build the ground for the next rally, analysts from MB Securities Co. said.

The market's breadth was negative as 251 stocks declined, while 193 stocks increased and 61 stocks stayed unchanged. 

The market's liquidity stayed high as more than 680.9 million shares were traded, worth over VNĐ17.2 trillion.

The VN30-Index dropped 0.68 per cent to 1,203.36 points. Twenty of the 30 biggest stocks in the VN30 basket slid while seven stocks rose.

Vietcombank (VCB) posted the biggest loss on Friday with a decrease of 3.38 per cent. Followed by Vinhomes JSC (VHM), Vietnam Rubber Group - JSC (GVR) and Vietjet Aviation JSC (VJC), down 1.91 per cent, 2.28 per cent and 3.26 per cent, respectively. 

The market's losses were capped by gains in Vingroup JSC (VJC), Hoà Phát Group JSC (HPG) and Vietnam Airlines JSC (HVN). These stocks climbed by 1.18 - 3.55 per cent. 

Meanwhile, on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index reversed the morning course to edge higher on Friday. The index reported an increase of 0.08 per cent to 277.7 points. 

Investors poured nearly VNĐ2.6 trillion into the northern exchange, with a trading volume of over 151.4 million shares. 

On the other hand, foreign investors were net sellers on both exchanges, with a net dell value of over VNĐ1.1 trillion on HoSE and a value of VNĐ35.22 billion on HNX. — VNS