Investors accelerated profit-taking on Tuesday on the HCM City Stock Exchange, pushing the VN-Index down 2.97 percent to a close of 516.08 points.
The value of trades rose to VND2.9 trillion (US$152.6 million) on a vigorous volume of 66.2 million shares. Sacombank (STB) was the most-active share with 3.3 million traded.
On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index slid by 2.68 per cent to 168.67 points, on a volume of 40.3 million shares, worth a combined VND1.4 trillion ($73.7 million). Kim Long Securities Company (KLS) made the most impressive showing on the day with a volume of 4.1 million shares.
Foreign investors turned out to be net sellers in HCM City by a net of 500,000 shares, while they continued as net buyers on the northern bourse by a miniscule net of 18,500 shares.
Tai Viet Securities Company analyst Nguyen Quang Minh said that profit-taking pressures were much stronger than during Monday's session, while buy orders just focused mostly on small stocks.
Minh eyed US economic data which suggested a rough road for economic recovery, as well concerns over China's willingness to cool down its overheated economy, as factors in yesterday's heavy sales.
Technically, he said, the Index had risen for most of the past month, putting many shares prices in a range to turn a tidy profit for many investors, making a market correction at this time inevitable. He suggested a trendline for the VN-Index at 515-520 points.
Ocean Securities Company analyst Nguyen Manh Tien also agreed that rising stock prices over the past months had built up profit-taking pressures, adding that the markets were now in a consolidation phase.
Favourable signs in the local economy, including inflation forecast to remain under 1 per cent this month, as well as good news coming out of annual shareholders meetings, would strengthen confidence in market prospect and lure new investment, Tien said, predicting the VN-Index this week would achieve a level of 545-550 points.