Shares ended early losses on Thursday morning, as the strong recovery of demand forces outweighed selling pressure.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, the market benchmark VN-Index increased 3.04 points, or 0.23 per cent, to 1,337.78 points.

The market's breadth was positive with 199 stocks climbing, while 158 slid. But the liquidity was lower as just VND10.73 trillion (US$466.9 million) was poured into HoSE, equivalent a trading volume of nearly 372.1 million shares.

The index gained back some points after early losses on material stocks. The VN30-Index, tracking 30 biggest stocks on the southern bourse, climbed 0.39 per cent to 1,477.93 points. Of the VN30 basket, 14 stocks rose, while 15 stocks declined and one stayed unchanged.

Hoa Phat Group (HPG) was leading the index's recovery, up 2.53 per cent. It was followed by Vietnam Rubber Group JSC (GVR), up 3.74 per cent.

Other stocks contributing to the gain were VPBank (VPB), Vingroup JSC (VIC), and Techcombank (TCB).

However the selling force remained strong with many big stocks recording falls, including PetroVietnam Gas JSC (PVGas, GAS), Masan Group (MSN), JSC Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV, BID) and Saigon Beer - Alcohol - Beverage Corporation (SAB).

On Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also edged 0.95 per cent higher this morning to 323.07 points. VNS