Blue chips were the main drag as 27 of the top 30 shares by market value and liquidity on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange lost value. — Photo maybank-kimeng.com.vn

Vietnamese shares joined the global market downturn as shares tumbled on the two main stock exchanges on Friday morning.

Shares sank into the red across the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, pulling the VN-Index down 0.75 per cent to 919.37 points.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange dropped 0.81 per cent to end at 103.69 points.

Liquidity was modest with just 95.5 million shares worth a combined VND1.6 trillion (US$69.2 million) traded on the two markets.

Blue chips were the main drag as 27 of the top 30 shares by market value and liquidity on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange lost value.

Steel, oil and gas stocks were hit hard.

The two biggest listed steelmakers Hoa Phat Group and Hoa Sen Group declined 3.8 per cent and 2.3 per cent, respectively

PV Gas, Petrolimex and PetroVietnam Drilling and Wells Service lost values of between 1.8 per cent and 3.3 per cent each.

Crude oil continued to slump on global markets with the Brent falling 2 per cent to US$70.65 per barrel on Thursday, down 21 per cent from its peak in mid-August. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) decreased 1.6 per cent to $60.67 per barrel, the lowest since March 14.

Big banks like Vietcombank, Vietinbank and BIDV were also losers of over 1 per cent each.

Asia’s main stock indices also underperformed this morning, with the Nikkei 225 and Shanghai Composite Index losing 1 per cent while the Hangseng index gave up over 500 points, equivalent to a loss of 2 per cent.

The afternoon trade starts at 1pm. – VNS