Unsettled investor psychology continued to send shares down on both the Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi stock exchanges, following steep declines on March 2.

In HCM City , the VN-Index dropped below the supporting threshold of 460 points to finish at 452.34, a loss of 1.2 percent from the previous day's close. Both the value and volume of trades fell by over 32 percent, with the value of trades reaching just 659.6 billion VND (31.4 million USD) on a volume of 30.7 million shares.

Decliners outnumbered gainers by 184-41, with most blue chips posting losses. PetroVietnam Finance (PVF) and Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAG) each closed down over 4 percent, while insurer Bao Viet Holdings (BVH) and Phu My Fertilisers (DPM) each lost 3.2 percent.

Only a few blue chips rose, including real estate developer Vincom Co (VIC), up 3.4 percent, and Sacombank (STB) and Eximbank (EIB), each up around 0.7 percent.

Saigon Securities Inc (SSI) continued to be the most-active share with 3.1 million traded, but SSI plummeted to a close of 22,000 VND per share, a loss of 4.3 percent.

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index also declined by 1.15 percent to close at 90.12. Value also plunged by 40 percent from the previous session to only 461.5 billion VND (22 million USD), with just over 32.5 million shares traded. Losers outnumbered gainers by 248-56./.