Vietnam’s benchmark VN-Index lost 4.29 percent to 1,243.51 points Monday, its biggest loss in a day since January, with tickers of four blue-chip lenders hitting floor prices.

Last week, Vietnam’s benchmark VN-Index dropped to below the threshold of 1,300 points, down nearly 49 points, or 3.5 percent, against the previous week.

Meanwhile, the HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, gained 0.34 percent, and the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market decreased over 2 percent.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which VN-Index is based, 130 shares saw price hikes, while 260 others witnessed price declines. Out of 19 stock categories, just three, namely telecommunications, oil and gas, and communications experienced price rises.

On July 12, VN-Index saw the sharpest-ever decline in a trading day. The fall was mainly attributed to the complex progress of the pandemic in HCMC and southern provinces that negatively affected stock investors.

According to securities companies, the index may fluctuate early this week, and then bounce back in the short term.

"The bourse is likely to fluctuate from July 19-23, but if the index stands at around 1,285 points, the chance for its short-term recovery is high," stated Vietnam KB Securities Companies.

BIDV Securities Company also stated VN-Index may decrease in the first trading days of this week, and bounce back in the following days, standing at 1,270-1,350 points.

Many analysts said swing trading could now be implemented for certain stock categories like banking, securities and real estate.

However, most forecasts were made right after the last trading day of last week, not taking into account new Covid-19 progress.

On Sunday afternoon, Hanoi decided to put a mild social distancing order in place starting Monday, right after an addition of 16 southern cities and provinces imposed social distancing orders in line with Instruction 16. Vietnam recorded over 50,000 Covid-19 infections Sunday, including 42 cases in Hanoi.

Some stock experts stated new progress could affect investor psychology. In a pessimistic scenario, VN-Index, widely believed to cling to a threshold of 1,250-1,270 points, may retreat to the 1,200-point zone.