A customer picking a Vinamilk product at a grocery store. Vinamilk shares dipped by 1.3 per cent yesterday, weighing the market in general. Photo vinamilk.com.vn

HÀ NỘI — The market settled lower on Friday as risk appetite was not strong enough to push up general sentiment. 

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) reversed the recent rally course and ended the week at 1,240.71 points, down 0.93 points, or 0.07 per cent.

The market’s breadth was negative with 223 stocks decreasing, while 209 inched higher. Liquidity was also lower than the previous session, of which nearly 505 million shares were traded on the southern bourse, worth over VNĐ12.46 trillion (US$537.7 million).

Stronger selling force was the main cause of the index’s reversal. The 30 biggest stocks tracker VN30-Index also posted a loss of 1.04 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1,282.51 points. 

In the VN30 basket, 17 stocks dropped, while ten posted positive performance and three stayed flat.

Manufacturing stocks led the downside trend, with Sabeco (SAB) posting the biggest loss of more than 3.9 per cent in market capitalisation. It was followed by Masan Group (MSN), down 2.36 per cent, and Vinamilk (VNM), down 1.3 per cent. 

Other stocks including PV Gas (GAS), Vietcombank (VCB), Hoà Phát (Group), and Vietinbank (CTG) also faced sell-off pressure. 

However, it was cushioned by pick-ups in some big stocks like Vietnam Rubber Group (GVR), Development Investment Construction JSC (DIG) and Asia Commercial JSC. 

Analysts from Saigon - Hanoi Securities JSC said that even though investors’ sentiment improved after rebounding for three straight sessions, they were still cautious, creating a lid for capital inflows. 

The market’s valuation remained at a low level that was very attractive to long-term investors, with the VN-Index’s and VN30-Index’s price per earning ratio (P/E) of around 13x, lower than the 5-year average, SHS added. 

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also slid 1 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 307.02 points. 

During the session, about VNĐ1.6 trillion worth of shares, equivalent to a trading volume of nearly 74 million shares, was traded on the northern market. 

Meanwhile, foreign investors were net sellers on the market, of which they net sold a value of VNĐ423.46 billion on HoSE. They net bought VNĐ1.95 billion on HNX.

The Vietnamese stock market moved differently from general Asian markets which jumped on Friday after China eased economic policies to support a slowing economy. VNS