The VN-Index dropped by more than 30 points at the opening, settling at 1,710 points. By 9:57 a.m., the index had fallen nearly 35 points, slipping close to the 1,700 threshold.

On the previous day, December 25, Vingroup-related stocks plunged near the end of the trading session, sparking a market-wide decline and pushing the VN-Index down by approximately 40 points-well off the 1,800 level it had briefly touched.

As of the morning session on December 26, four major Vin stocks-Vingroup (VIC), Vinpearl (VPL), Vincom Retail (VRE), and Vinhomes (VHM)-had all dropped to their daily floor limits. By 9:35 a.m., there were no active bids for these stocks, indicating a complete lack of buyer interest.

The sell-off spread to other blue-chip sectors, including banking and real estate. However, a few stocks remained in positive territory, including Hoa Phat (HPG), LPBank (LPB), Sacombank (STB), Vietcombank (VCB), TPBank (TPB), and Vinamilk (VNM), helping to partially offset the overall decline.

The steep drop in Vin stocks follows Vingroup’s announcement, released early afternoon on December 25, that it had formally requested to withdraw its investment registration for the North-South high-speed rail project.

The company cited its desire to reallocate resources to other priority infrastructure projects, including the Olympic Sports City and the national-level Trong Dong Stadium, as well as high-speed rail lines connecting Ben Thanh to Can Gio and Hanoi to Quang Ninh.

This move triggered a sharp market reaction and significant loss of wealth for Vingroup's founder. According to Forbes, Pham Nhat Vuong’s net worth dropped from $30 billion on December 23 to $28.1 billion by the end of December 25-a loss of $1.9 billion. This decline saw him fall below Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, who holds $29.6 billion.

Just days earlier, on December 19, Vingroup had been buoyed by the simultaneous groundbreaking of 11 major projects across Vietnam. These included developments in urban planning, infrastructure, green energy, and heavy industry, such as the $37.9 billion Olympic Sports City in Hanoi; the Ha Long Xanh and Cam Ranh mega-complexes; social housing in Hung Yen; an urban zone in Song Tri Ward, Ha Tinh; Vincom Plaza in Vinh, Nghe An; the Tuan Chau public park in Quang Ninh; the Ben Thanh–Can Gio high-speed rail line; two wind power plants; and the VinMetal steel plant in Vung Ang.

Vingroup was also assigned to develop key transportation infrastructure, including the Ben Thanh–Can Gio and Hanoi–Quang Ninh high-speed railways.

The group’s decision to step back from the North-South rail project comes amid concerns that VIC stock had overheated, prompting investors to offload holdings.

On the other side of the market, Sacombank (STB) and LPBank (LPB) both saw gains. Sacombank had previously hit the ceiling in two consecutive sessions after Nguyen Duc Thuy stepped down as chairman of LPBank to become CEO of Sacombank. LPB shares also rebounded following the same personnel news.

Manh Ha