HÀ NỘI — The stock market continued its recovery on Thursday, buoyed by gains in the banking sector. The VN-Index officially surpassed the 1,270-point threshold, while liquidity declined slightly and foreign investors maintained their net-selling trend.

On the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index edged up by 1.87 points, or 0.15 per cent, to close at 1,271.48 points. Despite the increase, market breadth remained negative, with 160 declining stocks outnumbering 148 gainers. Trading liquidity dropped slightly to approximately VNĐ12.9 trillion (US$511.1 million), with nearly 570 million shares changing hands.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 largest-cap stocks on HoSE, also gained 5.24 points, or 0.39 per cent, to end the session at 1,336.59 points. Within the VN30 basket, 14 stocks advanced, 11 declined and five remained unchanged.

The banking sector played a key role in driving the market's upward movement. Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TCB) rose by 2.02 per cent, contributing approximately 0.86 points to the VN-Index.

Fortune Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank (LPB) followed with a 1.67 per cent gain, while the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB) climbed by 0.32 per cent. Additional support came from Vingroup Joint Stock Company (VIC) and the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BID), which rose by 1.1 per cent and 0.51 per cent, respectively.

However, certain large-cap stocks weighed on the market's gains. Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (VNM) fell by 1.3 per cent, erasing nearly 0.4 points from the VN-Index. Bình Sơn Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (BSR) dropped by 1.2 per cent, while FPT Digital Retail Joint Stock Company (FRT) strongly declined by 4.95 per cent.

Analysts at the Việt Dragon Securities noted: “The market continued to rise, though the gains were modest, forming a star-shaped candlestick pattern due to the hesitation among large-cap stocks. Liquidity declined compared to the previous session but remained above the 20-session average, indicating that capital flows are still seeking opportunities in the market, while supply pressure remains temporarily low.

"The market is expected to remain in a consolidation phase in the next session. However, with the effort to maintain positive momentum and continued support from the February 4 session, the market may gradually extend its upward trend and test the next resistance zone of 1,275–1,285 points.

“Therefore, investors can anticipate a further market recovery. At present, they may explore short-term opportunities in stocks showing strong rebounds from support zones. However, they should also consider taking short-term profits on stocks that have risen rapidly towards resistance levels.”

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index declined by 0.5 per cent to close at 229.13 points, with a trading value exceeding VNĐ743 billion and more than 45 million shares traded.

Foreign investors continued their net selling but reduced their volumes, offloading shares worth over VNĐ344 billion on the HoSE. — VNS