The market inched higher on Friday morning on strong gains in bank stocks.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the market benchmark VN-Index rose 4.07 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 1,473.9 points, reversing course after losing 0.41 per cent the previous session.

The market's breadth was still negative as 184 stocks climbed, while 269 stocks declined.

However the liquidity increased compared to yesterday with nearly 832 million stocks traded on the southern bourse, worth nearly VND24 trillion.

The index's reversal was mainly due to strong gains in large-cap stocks, especially bank stocks.

The VN30-Index climbed 13.16 points, or 0.88 per cent, to 1,516.58 points. Of the VN30 basket, 17 stocks jumped, while 12 slid and one ended flat.

Bank stocks was leading the market's rally trend this morning, with Techcombank being the biggest gainer, up 2.72 per cent.

Other stocks supporting the market were BIDV (BID), Vietinbank (CTG), VPBank (VPB) and HDBank (HDB), with HDB hitting the biggest daily gain of 7 per cent, while the rest climbed more than 2 per cent.

Meanwhile, strong selling force still weighed on the market as many large-cap stocks posted big falls such as PV Gas (Gas) down 2.72 per cent and Hoa Phat Group (HPG) down 1.8 per cent.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX) extended rallies, up 3.05 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 471.78 points. VNS