Vietnamese shares moved marginally on Thursday morning while large-cap stocks struggled amid market caution.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange was up only 0.05 per cent to end at 1,025.40 points.

The VN-Index gained total 2.61 per cent in the previous four trading days.

Nearly 95 million shares were traded on the southern bourse, worth VND2.13 trillion (US$91.6 million).

The market breadth was negative with 175 gaining stocks and 130 gainers.

The large-cap VN30-Index ended almost flat at 942.44 points while mid-cap and small-cap VNMID and VNSML indices inched down 0.07-0.08 per cent.

In the VN30 basket, gainers balanced decliners (14 versus 14) while two stocks were unchanged.

Low liquidity, the negative market breadth and the balance of the VN30 basket indicated investors were cautious at the moment.

Investors tried to hold onto their money while looking for opportunities in different groups of stocks.

In the morning session, securities firms, retailers, technology companies and building material makers were among a few groups of companies that saw their share prices rise.

Meanwhile, insurance, banking, mining and petroleum, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and food and beverage were among the worst-performing sectors.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index edged down 0.06 per cent to end at 106.68 points.

The northern market index had rallied total 1.5 per cent in the previous four days.

Nearly 14 million shares were traded, worth VND177 billion.

The afternoon trading session starts at 1pm. — VNS