Shares in the country’s two stock exchanges experienced a steady rise Friday morning amid increased bargain purchases by both domestic and foreign investors.

The VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange rose 2.31 per cent to close the morning session at 993.66 points.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index was up 0.88 per cent at 115.92 points.

Twenty-six stocks in the VN30 basket, which tracks the top 30 shares by market value and liquidity on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, gained value, while only four slipped.

Steelmaker Hoa Sen Group (HSG) and budget airline Vietjet Air (VJC) were the top performers among the gainers, hitting the daily increase limit of 7 per cent. Other heavyweight shares such as Vinamilk (VNM), VinGroup (VIC), Vietcombank (VCB), and BIDV (BID), as well as Vietinbank (CTG), Masan Group (MSN), and PV Gas (GAS) gained between 2.5-5 per cent each.

According to Vietcombank Securities Co, prices of many stocks have declined substantially after the previous market slump and gain the attention of investors, and this showed in increases in liquidity.

A total of 156 million shares worth VND3.93 trillion (US$172.5 million) were traded in the two markets in the morning trading session, up 39 per cent in volume and 36 per cent in value compared to Thursday morning.

The afternoon session starts at 1pm. — VNS