This is the most points Vietnam’s benchmark index has lost in a single session since the end of July, when the country’s second Covid-19 outbreak happened.

The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the VN-Index is based, saw as many as 365 stocks lose and just 66 gain. Fifteen of these stocks hit their floor prices, the lowest they can go in a trading session.

Trading volume rose slightly over the past session, to VND9.02 trillion ($387.78 million).

The losses this session are not a big surprise, since investors have been withdrawing cash since the beginning of the week, said an executive at a securities firm in Ho Chi Minh City.

"Consecutive sessions of gains since the beginning of October, driven by positive third quarter business results, have pushed prices of stocks to a very high level, so there is not much more room for them to gain and investors are eager to take profits now," he said.

In fact, positive third quarter business results are not slowing down losses because they had been anticipated beforehand and reflected in gains before this week. So stocks are seeing short-term corrective pressure, said another expert with the Bao Viet Securities Company.

The VN30-Index for the stock market’s 30 largest caps slid 2.67 percent, and accounted for over 60 percent of total trading volume this session. Twenty-eight of these closed in the red, and two kept their opening prices.

VIC of private conglomerate Vingroup, HoSE’s biggest cap, ended its streak of four consecutive gaining sessions with a 5.2 percent plunge. Two of its subsidiaries, VHM of real estate developer Vinhomes and VRE of mall operator Vincom Retail, also shed 2.58 percent and 5.56 percent respectively.

In the public banking sector, BID of BIDV fell 3.44 percent, CTG of VietinBank, 2.76 percent, VCB of Vietcombank, 2.09 percent, and MBB of mid-sized Military Bank, 1.96 percent.

Private banks fared worse, with HDB of HDBank shedding 6.3 percent, VPB of VPBank, 4.7 percent, TCB of Techcombank, 3.9 percent, and STB of Sacombank, 1.5 percent. Only EIB of Eximbank kept its opening price.

In the manufacturing sector, HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group dropped 3.18 percent, followed by MSN of food conglomerate Masan Group, 2.16 percent, and VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk, 2.01 percent.

The stocks of aviation, retail, information technology, and securities all recorded declines. The biggest caps of these were MWG of electronics retailer Mobile World, down 4.55 percent, PNJ of Phu Nhuan Jewelry, 4.9 percent, and SSI of brokerage Saigon Securities, 2.91 percent.

While all real estate blue chips were in the red, (NVL of Novaland, ROS of FLC Faros, KDH of Khang Dien House, and TCH of Hoang Huy Group), many smaller caps off the VN30 actually gained under 1 percent.

Meanwhile, the HNX-Index for the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid- and small-caps, tumbled 2.25 percent, while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Companies Market shed 1.06 percent.

Foreign investors continued to be net sellers this session to the tune of over VND470 billion on all three bourses. The most net sold stocks were MSN of food conglomerate Masan Group, and VRE of Vincom Retail.