Shares fell on the two local exchanges on Wednesday as investors increased sales to earn profits from the stock market’s recently growth.

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange was down 0.5 per cent to close at 712.94 points. The southern market index had gained 0.8 per cent in the previous two sessions.

The HNX Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange put a dent to its six-day rally of 3.6 per cent, ending 0.4 per cent lower at 89.77 points.

Strong investor sales boosted market liquidity compared to Tuesday with more than 334.3 million shares being traded, worth VND5.74 trillion (US$255.4 million).

Those figures increased by 8 per cent in trading volume and 16.4 per cent in trading value from Tuesday’s levels.

The stock market was pulled down by disappointing performances among 18 of the 20 sectors in the market.

The banking sector index fell 0.3 per cent. Vietinbank (CTG) and Vietcombank (VCB) dropped 0.8 per cent each following a four-day gain of 3.9 per cent and a two-day increase of 2.7 per cent. Others such as Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) and Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BID) ended flat.

The brokerage sector also ended on the decline. HCM City Securities Corp (HCM) dropped 2.3 per cent after rising 1.4 per cent in the previous two sessions; Sai Gon Securities Inc (SSI) declined 2 per cent from a four-day rise of 8 per cent; and VNDirect Securities Corp (VND) slashed 2.1 per cent following its four-day rally of 8.4 per cent.

The energy sector was pulled down by a two-day loss of global crude prices. Brent crude fell 1.4 per cent to trade at $50.23 a barrel, down total 2.7 per cent in the last two days.

In the local market, PetroVietnam Gas Corp (GAS) lost 2.6 per cent, and other energy shares were down between 0.9 per cent and 1.7 per cent.

The stock market performed positively in the morning and the first half of the afternoon, when investment flew in local shares and pulled the market up strongly, Sai Gon-Ha Noi Securities Corp (SHS) wrote in its daily report.

During Wednesday’s session, there was time when the VN Index surpassed 720 points, however, that landmark triggered profit-taking among investors and pushed the index below Tuesday’s closing score, SHS said.

“The 720-point level appears to be a challenging resistance level for the VN Index,” SHS said, adding that the benchmark index will be quite volatile on Thursday, moving in a narrow range of 710 and 714 points. — VNS