After a brief respite yesterday, strong selling returned to the market on Thursday as the VN-Index sank 1.7%, closing below 900 for the first time since November. Trading value on HOSE continued its summer slump, reaching just USD160mn. Banks once again took the brunt of the pain, led by VCB (-6.5%), CTG (-6.4%), BID (-5.7%) and MBB (-5.7%). GAS (-6.9%) extended a 16% plunge over the last three days to hit an eight-month low.