The benchmark VN-Index inched higher on Tuesday morning on bank and real estate stocks but losses in many large-caps capped the gain.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index climbed 0.06 per cent to 1,236.81 points despite the market breadth turning negative. During the morning session, 117 stocks increased while 217 stocks declined.

However, the market's liquidity stayed high with over 638.3 million shares traded, worth over VND14.9 trillion.

The gain of the 30 large-cap tracker was the main driving force for the market's rally. The VN30-Index increased 0.19 per cent to 1,252.3 points. Of the VN30 basket, 13 stocks gained while 17 slid.

Stocks contributing the most to the market's rally were Vingroup JSC (VIC), Vietinbank (CTG), MBBank (MBB) and Techcombank (TCB).

Meanwhile, the losses of some big stocks in banking and materials sectors limited the upward trend. These stocks included Vietcombank (VCB), Saigon - Beer - Alcohol - Beverage Corporation (SAB), Vietnam Dairy Products JSC (Vinamilk, VNM) and Masan Group (MSN).

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index decreased 0.66 per cent to 289.32 points. The HNX30-Index also lost 1.18 per cent to 436.15 points.

Foreign investors returned to net sell on both exchanges, worth VND174.15 billion. VNS