The stock market inched higher on Friday morning on bullish sentiment, but gains were capped by losses in some large-cap stocks.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) rose 5.3 points, or 0.41 per cent, to 1,299.22 points. However the market's breadth was negative, as 153 stocks climbed while 187 stocks declined.

The market liquidity was low with just more than 263.3 million shares traded on the southern bourse in the morning session, worth over VND8.8 trillion (US$384.2 million).

The index continued yesterday's rallies on the return of investors' risk appetite. The VN30-Index jumped 0.68 per cent to 1,440.03 points. 18 of the 30 biggest stocks in the VN30 basket edged higher this morning while eight stocks fell and four stocks stayed unchanged.

Real estate and material stocks led the market's trend in the morning session, with Vingroup JSC (VIC) being the biggest gainer, up 3.14 per cent.

It was followed by Masan Group (MSN), Hoa Phat Group (HPG) and Phat Dat Real Estate Development JSC (PDR). These stocks all gained more than 1 per cent.

Meanwhile, losses in some stocks limited the gain. Of which, Vinhomes JSC (VHM) posted the biggest losses, down 0.91 per cent, followed by Saigon Beer - Alcohol - Beverage Corporation (Sabeco, SAB), down 0.88 per cent.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also rose 0.35 per cent to 307.38 points. VNS