Low crude keeps stocks down

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese shares on July 26 extended losses for a sixth day as lower oil prices kept investors worried about the prospect of energy stocks.

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange inched down 0.1 percent to end at 648.59 points. The southern market index has fallen 3.7 percent in the past six sessions.

The HNX Index on the Hanoi Stock Exchange dropped 0.6 percent to close at 83.52 points. The northern market index has decreased by 4.1 percent in the last six days.

The energy sector weighed on investors’ sentiment on July 26 after oil prices declined for a fourth trading day.

US crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) lost 0.9 percent to trade at 42.74 USD a barrel and London-traded Brent crude edged down 0.5 percent to trade at 44.49 USD a barrel, totalling a four-session fall of 4.9 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively.

The largest energy stocks all declined. PetroVietnam Gas Corp (GAS) plunged 4.8 percent, while the others such as PetroVietnam Mud Drilling Corp (PVC) and PetroVietnam Technical Services Corp (PVS) fell between 1.8 percent and 3 percent.

Other large-cap stocks on the two local exchanges on July 26 continued to decline, including consumer goods producer Masan Group (MSN), Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BID), Tien Phong Plastic JSC (NTP) and Asia Commercial Bank (ACB).

MSN was down 0.7 percent, BID slid 0.6 percent, NTP fell slightly by 0.3 percent and ACB dropped 1.1 percent.

“Investors remained cautious on the market’s current slowdown and chose to stay off trading,” Saigon-Hanoi Securities Corp (SHS) wrote in its daily report.

Weak investor sentiment resulted in low trading liquidity. Local exchanges had more than 143 million shares in trading worth 2.4 trillion VND (106.7 million USD), a quarter lower in value from last week’s daily trading figures.

Investors also turned their focus on some listed companies that have given positive news on their business, SHS said. Those firms are Vietnam Dairy Products JSC (VNM), steel producer Hoa Phat Group (HPG) and fish exporter Hung Vuong Corp (HVG).

VNM rose 1.9 percent after foreign investors purchased half of the stocks that were traded on the market. VNM last week announced it lifted the limit of ownership for foreign investors.

HPG jumped 3.4 percent and HVG surged 6.9 percent after the two companies reported higher year-on-year profits for the first half of this year.-VNA