Vietnamese shares were mixed on Wednesday morning, while trading liquidity remained low due to investors’ caution.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange fell 0.28 per cent to close at 959.31 points.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange edged up 0.44 per cent to end at 103.92 points.

The VN-Index and HNX-Index lost 0.38 per cent and 0.60 per cent on Tuesday.

More than 80 million shares were traded on the two local exchanges, worth nearly VND1.8 trillion (US$77 million).

The mixed performance was caused by investors’ caution as they were worried about a worldwide economic slowdown.

Local stocks were mixed with the banking, energy and petroleum, real estate, food and beverage and seafood processing sectors declining.

Gainers included insurance, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and plastics and chemicals.

It was obvious market sentiment returned to the negative side despite trade deals being signed to help Vietnamese exports tap EU markets.

Poor confidence pulled down 20 of the 30 largest stocks by market value and trading liquidity in the VN30 basket.

The VN30-Index decreased by 0.45 per cent to close at 868.98 points.

The afternoon trading session starts at 1pm. — VNS