Shares advanced in both local exchanges on Wednesday morning, as banks and agriculture firms benefited from positive business and market information.

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange added 0.26 per cent to close at 758.89 points. It had increased by a total of nearly one per cent over the past two days.

The HNX Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange gained 0.38 per cent to end at 97.68 points. It had risen 0.5 per cent on Tuesday.

Around 147.4 million shares were traded on both bourses, worth a combined VND2.72 trillion (US$120.8 million).

The stock market got a boost as shares of banks and agriculture firms gained. The banking sector was lifted by market speculations that the National Assembly may approve a new policy to help local lenders resolve the issue of non-performing loans.

Seven of the nine listed bank stocks increased, and the biggest gainers were including MBBank (MBB), Vietinbank (CTG), BIDV (BID) and Vietcombank (VCB).

The agriculture sector was driven up by Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group (HAG) and Hoang Anh Gia Lai Agriculture International (HNG), after the latter announced that its revenue in 2017 could touch VND2.5 trillion. HAG surged 6.3 per cent, while HNG hit its daily trading limit of 6.9 per cent.

The afternoon session starts at 1pm. — VNS