HÀ NỘI — Benchmark indices ended mixed on Wednesday as selling pressure intensified among large-cap stocks, pushing the VN-Index lower towards the close and extending its decline to three consecutive sessions.

The VN-Index, representing the Hochiminh Stock Exchange (HoSE), fell 9.11 points to 1,768.62 points. This was its lowest level in four weeks.

The bourse was dominated by decliners in the final session of the month, with more than 170 stocks falling, including seven that hit their daily floor prices.

Phu Nhuan Jewellery (PNJ) and KOSY JSC (KOS) were among the stocks hitting the floor. Both closed without buyers, leaving sell orders of more than 26 million PNJ shares and 31 million KOS shares at the floor price.

Trading liquidity on HoSE remained relatively low, reaching VNĐ15.2 trillion (US$586.6 million).

The September performance contrasted with expectations that the VN-Index would maintain the strong momentum recorded in August, when the benchmark gained nearly 100 points. Instead, the index lost a total of 64 points, or 3.5 per cent, during the month. 

Many analysts had previously forecast that the VN-Index could reach 1,900 points or even break above 2,000 points to establish a new record, with the market upgrade expected to help attract foreign capital.

Recent market corrections have been strongly affected by Vingroup-related shares.

Vingroup (VIC) fell for three consecutive sessions, weighing on the VN-Index by around three to six points per session since the beginning of the week. On Wednesday, VIC declined nearly 1 per cent and was the biggest negative contributor to the benchmark.

In contrast, the HNX-Index on the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) finished the month higher at 271.64 points, up 1.73 points.

Foreign investors continued their selling streak, recording net selling for a fifth consecutive session, with selling pressure becoming stronger.

Particularly, they net sold over VNĐ888 billion on HoSE and nearly VNĐ12 billion on HNX.

According to analysts at Yuanta Vietnam Securities, market quality remained relatively weak, as reflected in low liquidity, poor market breadth and a high number of stocks falling to new lows.

The securities firm said investment opportunities remained available but were concentrated rather than broadly distributed, focusing on several medium- and large-cap groups with prospects for maintaining high earnings growth, including oil and gas, retail, rubber and consumer stocks.

For short-term investors, Yuanta recommended taking profits on investments that had risen strongly since August to preserve performance, while waiting for entry points in sectors showing stronger relative strength or those expected to report positive third-quarter business results. — BIZHUB/VNS