Margin trading ban hits home

October 12, 2011 | 16:04

(0) user say

The local stock market tumbled Wednesday as investors bailed out of securities that were banned from margin trading by the two stock exchanges yesterday.

The two stock exchanges announced lists of securities not allowed to be used as mortgaged assets for margin trading yesterday, among them several top-active stocks like Saigon Securities Inc. (SSI), Kim Long Securities (KLS), Bao Viet Securities (BVS) and VnDirect Securities (VND) due to those companies’ business losses.

Ahead of looming risks that brokerage firms would stop providing margin trading services to these stocks, investors rushed to sell these stocks this morning.

SSI was the second most active stock on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) with 1.9 million shares matched, hitting the floor. Vietnam Electricity Construction (VNE) followed with 1.4 million shares matched, dropping 4 per cent.

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX), Kim Long Securities (KLS), VnDirect Securities (VND), Bao Viet Securities (BVS) and Vietnam Construction and Import -Export (VCG) sharply fell with millions of units matched each.

Other shares were aggressively sold as well. Among them major stocks like Ocean Group (OGC), PetroVietnam-Idico Long Son Industrial Park Investment (PXL) and Tan Tao Investment Industry Corp. (ITA).

Up to 196 stocks out of 282 listing on the HoSE fell, while just 36 were up. Decliners on the HNX reached 212 stocks, overwhelming 50 advancers.

The benchmark VN-Index of the HoSE lost 6.82 points or 1.63 per cent to close at 410.91 points. The HNX-Index shed 1.45 points or 2.04 per cent to 69.48 points.

However, HNX’s liquidity soared to 44 million shares worth VND462 billion ($22.5 million).

Total volume also rose to 35.2 million shares worth VND513.1 billion ($25 million) on the southern bourse.

By Hai Linh

vir.com.vn

What the stars mean:

★ Poor ★ ★ Promising ★★★ Good ★★★★ Very good ★★★★★ Exceptional