Shares continued to inch higher on Thursday morning, backed by gains in large-cap stocks. However selling pressure rose as investors booked profits after strong increases in the last session.
The VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) jumped 9.05 points, or 0.64 per cent, to 1,432.07 points. The market's breadth remained positive with 262 stocks edging higher, while 156 declined.
The liquidity was also higher than yesterday, as nearly 511.9 million shares were traded on the southern bourse, worth over VND14.8 trillion (US$654 million).
The benchmark still received support from large-cap stocks across all sectors. Of which, the VN30-Index, which tracks 30 biggest stocks on HoSE, climbed 5.2 points, or 0.34 per cent, to 1,521.66 points.
There were 21 stocks in the VN30 basket gaining points, while seven stocks slid and two stayed unchanged.
Becamex (BCM) led the gaining group this morning, with a sharp rise of 6.8 per cent. It was followed by Vietcombank (VCB), PetroVietnam Gas (GAS) and Vietnam Rubber Group (GVR), up in a range of 0.83 - 1.63 per cent.
The rallies were curbed by losses in some big stocks. Accordingly, Hoa Phat Group (HPG) lost the most, down 0.52 per cent.
On Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also inched up 4.47 points, or 1.11 per cent, higher to 408.84 points.
Meanwhile, foreign investors were still net buyers on HoSE, with a net value of VND15.43 billion. VNS