
The key index on the HCM Stock Exchange finished at 712.41 points,slightly lower than the previous closing level. It fell 0.6 percent on April 20.
The major stock exchange on April 21 recorded an all-time tradingvalue with 6.5 trillion VND (289.1 million USD) worth of more than 202 millionshares exchanged.
The significant rise in trading value was attributed to thenegotiation-based transaction for 60 million shares of consumer goods producerMasan Group (MSN), worth 2.52 trillion VND.
Stocks on the southern bourse had a mixed performance with thenumber of gainers balancing the number of losers.
The VN30 Index, tracking the 30 largest companies by marketcapitalisation, saw 13 declining stocks against 11 increasing ones.
Worst decliners included Vietinbank (CTG), Binh Minh Plastic(BMP), PetroVietnam Fertiliser and Chemicals (DPM), dairy producer Vinamilk(VNM) and Sacombank (STB).
Energy stocks were down on the volatile global oil prices. Brentcrude was bumpy and trade at 52.99 USD a barrel, equal to April 20’s closingprice.
On the opposite side, the southern bourse was supported by somefirms such as property developer Novaland (NVL) and HCM City Securities (HCM).
Among those companies, Novaland’s shares gained 2.4 percent afterits chairman Bui Thanh Nhon registered to buy more than 19.5 million shares ofNovaland within one month from April 24.
HCM City Securities (HCM) inched up 0.2 percent after the companyannounced its first-quarter post-tax profit reached 95 billion VND, up 47 percentfrom last year’s first quarter.
The HCM Stock Exchange on April 21 also saw the debut of the VietnamNational Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) under code PLX with the listing of nearly1.3 billion shares at the opening price of 43,200 VND per share.
With the debut, Petrolimex became one of the 10 largest companiesin the stock market. The company’s shares jumped 13.2 percent on April 21.
Investor confidence helped keep the VN-Index positive during mostof the time on April 21 due to increasing earnings reported by listed firms andthe listing of Petrolimex, BIDV Securities (BSC) said in a note.
However, the benchmark index lost its momentum and ended slightlydown as investors were still cautious over potential global risks, the brokersaid.
In the current market condition, if the VN Index accumulates atthe level of 710 points next week, the stock market will rise, BSC said.
The HNX-Index on the minor Hanoi Stock Exchange gained 0.46 percentto finish at 88.87 points. The northern market index had dropped 0.7 percent intotal in the previous two days.-VNA