VN-Index rebounds despite trade value tumble

The index fluctuated around 1,280 points in the morning and shot up in the afternoon to close with a 14-point gain. This is its biggest increase in the last six sessions.

Trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the index is based, fell nearly 22 percent to VND15.14 trillion ($661 million), the lowest since April 8, indicating investors are reluctant to pour money into the market fearing another plunge.

The VN30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 20 tickers in the green, led by SBT of sugar producer Thanh Thanh Cong – Bien Hoa JSC with a 6.9 percent gain.

It was followed by SSI of leading brokerage SSI Securities Corporation, up 5.3 percent, and STB of Ho Chi Minh City-based lender Sacombank, up 5.1 percent.

CTG of state-owned lender VietinBank gained 3.9 percent, ending a chain of five consecutive losing sessions.

HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group contributed most to VN-Index’s gain this session, pushing it up by 1.8 points, followed by VPB of private lender VPBank with 1.7 points.

On the losing side, VJC of budget airline Vietjet dropped 1.9 percent, while KDH of real estate firm Khang Dien House fell 1.2 percent.

Foreign investors were net buyers for the second session in a row to the tune of VND728 billion, with strongest pressure on HPG and SSI.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, surged 3.19 percent while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market gained 0.5 percent.