HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese shares pulled back on Wednesday morning after two sessions of sharp gains as investors fretted over uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic as fatalities mounted across the globe.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange lost 1.16 per cent to end the morning at 738.06 points.

The VN-Index gained 1.35 per cent to end Tuesday at 746.69 points.

More than 149.2 million shares were traded on the southern exchange, worth VND2 trillion (US$85.2 million).

On Tuesday morning, the large-cap tracker VN30-Index declined 1.74 per cent to close at 681.52 points.

In the VN30 basket, 24 of the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation and trading liquidity lost ground while 4 climbed. Two stayed unchanged.

While the number of emergency admission cases cooled down in New York State, single-day deaths across the US hit a record of more than 1,900.

The S&P 500 ended Tuesday down 0.16 per cent. The Nasdaq dropped 0.33 per cent and the Dow lost 0.12 per cent.

In Asia, Shanghai blue chips lost 0.6 per cent. Mainland China’s cases also doubled in 24 hours due to infected overseas travellers.

After US stock markets closed, President Donald Trump said the US was about to hit its peak. He asked Congress for an additional $250 billion aid package for small businesses seriously suffering from the pandemic, Reuters reported.

On the Vietnamese market, selling pressure slammed many stock groups, hindering indices from maintaining their momentum. Large-cap stocks such as Bao Viet Holdings (BVH) decreased by 6.1 per cent to VND44,900 per share, Phu Nhuan Jewellery (PNJ) lost 4.4 per cent, Masan Group (MSN) declined 3.5 per cent, Vingroup (VIC) slumped by 2.6 per cent.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange decreased 1.47 per cent to close Wednesday morning at 101.91 points.

More than 26.7 million shares were traded on the northern bourse, worth VND269.5 billion.

Afternoon trading starts at 1pm. — VNS