Vietnam ’s stock market was covered by a gloomy atmosphere in the first trading day of the new year on January 2 after the last two busy sessions of last year. The VN-Index of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) opened the new year with a decrease of 2.28 points or 0.72 percent to close at 313.34 points.


The market saw over 5.6 million shares and fund certificates worth 131 billion VND change hands, equivalent to one third of the previous session.


Among 174 listed codes, 71 rallied for gains, 57 declined, 44 remained unchanged and two saw no transactions.


The Hanoi Securities Trading Centre’s HaSTC-Index experienced a slight decrease in the fourth consecutive session, down 0.65 points or 0.62 percent to 104.47 points.


A total 2.9 million shares, worth 62.5 billion VND, were traded, compared with 6.1 million and 165.9 billion VND, respectively, in the previous session.