Vietnamese shares declined on Thursday morning as investors were quite cautious and concerned about the possibility of a market bull trap given the market’s unexpected rebound on Wednesday.

The benchmark VN Index on HCM Stock Exchange fell by 1.42 per cent to close at 967.05 points. It had jumped 1.95 per cent on Wednesday.

The HNX Index on Ha Noi Stock Exchange lost 1.74 per cent to close at 110.16 points. It had gained 1.38 per cent on Wednesday.

Liquidity plunged, with more than 70 million shares, worth VND1.6 trillion (US$70 million), being traded on the two local exchanges, down by 63 per cent in volume and 64 per cent in value compared to Wednesday’s session.

Declining stocks dominated the two indices, with losers outnumbering gainers 267 to 118, indicating a negative market breadth.

Nineteen of 20 sectors of the stock market slumped and continued to underperform, including banking-finance, property development, energy and food and beverages.

Large-cap stocks were on the negative side as the VN30 Index, which tracks the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation, fell by 1.51 per cent to 952.27 points.

Among the declining stocks were Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam, Vietcombank, Saigon Securities Inc., budget carrier Vietjet, real estate firm Novaland and steel producer Hoa Phat.

The afternoon trading session starts at 1pm. – VNS