Customers withdraw cash notes from VPBank's ATMs. Listed banks on Wednesday made strong gains to drive the market up from a two-day decline. — Photo vietnamfinance.vn
Vietnamese shares picked up strongly on Wednesday from a two-day decline despite negative moves among regional stocks amid worries about the prospects of a US-China trade deal.
The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange gained 1.31 per cent to close at 965.90 points.
That was the biggest daily gain for the benchmark index since November 1.
The VN-Index had lost a total of 1.78 per cent the previous two trading days.
The Vietnamese stock market was on an opposite path to Asia-Pacific markets as global investors reacted badly to US President Donald Trumps hint of a delayed US-China trade truce.
Banking shares were the main driving force for the market, with the sector's index rising 2.8 per cent.
Nine of the 10 listed banks on the southern market advanced after being dragged down by selling the previous days.
Banks were also the factor that lifted the large-cap VN30-Index, which soared 1.71 per cent to 883.56 points to end the day.
In the VN30 basket, 23 of the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation and trading liquidity increased. Eight of the 23 gainers were banking stocks.
They included HDBank (HDB), VPBank (VPB), Vietinbank (CTG), Techcombank (TCB), Sacombank (STB), Vietcombank (VCB) and Military Bank (MBB).
Their shares jumped at least 3 per cent on Wednesday.
Beside banks, retailers, securities firms, tech businesses, and mining and petroleum companies also bolstered market growth.
Yesterdays strong rebound helped market sentiment stabilise and balance after investors panicked the previous two days, Thanh Cong Securities Co (TCSC) said in its daily report.
But it was too soon to say if the market had returned to an uptrend, the company said, adding it would take the market a while to balance before growing again.
More than 210 million shares were traded on the southern bourse, worth VND4.73 trillion (US$204.2 million).
Compared to Tuesday, trading volume fell 21 per cent and trading value was down 40 per cent.
Decreased trading liquidity indicated yesterday's growth could be technical, Sai Gon-Ha Noi Securities Co (SHS) said in a note.
The benchmark would still encounter pressure when it returned to previous resistance levels, including the nearest one of 970 points, the company said.
Investors were betting the VN-Index would keep rising, SHS said, adding it was expected to test the 970 point level today.
On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index was up 1.39 per cent to end at 102.47 points. The northern market index increased by 1.55 per cent over the last two trading days.
More than 24 million shares were traded on the northern bourse, worth VND275.6 billion. — VNS