Markets sustained positive momentum for the second consecutive session, bolstered by the strong performance of the banking sector.

The VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) rose 0.2 per cent, to 1,188.48 points.

More stocks moved to the upside on the southern bourse, of which 244 ticker symbols inched higher, while 212 stocks finished lower.

Liquidity declined compared to the previous session, with nearly 619.7 million shares traded on HoSE, worth nearly VNĐ14.6 trillion (US$599 million).

The benchmark index was boosted by gains in large-cap stocks, with the 30 biggest stocks tracker VN30-Index posting an increase of 0.15 per cent, to 1,199.17 points. Twenty stocks in the VN30 basket jumped, while nine stocks slid and one ended flat.

Leading the market's uptrend were pillar stocks in banking industries. In the top five stocks influencing the market, Vietinbank (CTG) and HDBank (HDB) were the biggest gainers with a 1.5 per cent increase each. It was followed by VPBank (VPB), Sacombank (STB) and Techcombank (TCB).

The strong performance of the banking sector, coupled with the positive market sentiment it generated, contributed to the sustained positive momentum experienced in the markets for the second consecutive session, said vietstock.vn.

"After a struggle at the 1,170 level, the market resumed its uptrend and crossed the 1,180 level. Liquidity decreased from the previous session, but was still quite good, indicating that cash flow is trying to support the market's value," said Việt Dragon Securities.

"Currently, the market is challenging the resistance zone of 1,185-1,190. With the current momentum, it is likely that the market will overcome this resistance zone after a period of struggle."

"Therefore, investors can expect the market to extend its upward trend. At the moment, investors should give priority to stocks that show good signals from the support zone to hold or buy cumulatively, but they should still consider taking short-term profits on stocks that are rising rapidly to the resistance zone."

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also finished higher yesterday. It rose 0.15 per cent to 230.63 points.

During the session, VNĐ1.7 trillion worth of shares, equivalent to a trading volume of nearly 84.5 million shares, was traded on the northern market. — VNS