Vietnamese shares dropped on Tuesday morning, dragged by banks, petro firms and real estate companies.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange fell 0.34 per cent to close at 962.32 points.

The VN-Index gained 1.65 per cent on Monday.

More than 75.7 million shares were traded on the southern bourse, worth VND1.66 trillion (US$71.3 million).

Investors were unable to uphold their positive sentiment following the ratification of the EU-Viet Nam trade agreements as worries about the slowdown of the global economy rose again.

Bank, petro and real estate stocks made strong gains to lift the market on Monday but they lost ground soon after the market opened in the morning session.

Stocks also gained slower or declined in sectors like textile and garment and seafood processing, which are expected to enjoy more open export conditions for EU markets following the signing of the trade deals.

Large-cap shares underperformed, pulling the VN30-Index down 0.35 per cent to 873.21 points at the end of the morning session.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index lost 0.60 per cent to end at 103.47 points.

The northern market index was up 0.56 per cent on Monday.

More than 14 million shares were traded on the northern bourse, worth VND195.6 billion.

The afternoon trading session starts at 1pm. — VNS