Up to 300 million shares of Vietjet (code VJC) officially made their debut on the HCM Stock Exchange (HOSE) on Tuesday.

Vietjey is the first airline in Viet Nam to list on the southern bourse.

At the opening price of VND90,000 per share, Vietjet’s market capitalisation stood at VND27 trillion, equal to US$1.2 billion, accounting for 1.5 per cent of the bourse’s capitalisation as of 15th February.

At close of this morning's trade, VJC rose 20 per cent to hit a ceiling price of VND108,000.

Vietjet said in its statement it also joined the ranks of "VN 30," Việt Nam’s largest publicly-traded companies in terms of market capitalisation.

“Vietjet shall maintain a continuous and high growth rate and we believe that there will be a brighter future in the air for our passengers, the airline and its investors,” Vietjet president and CEO Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao said.

“Vietjet strives to become an airline with high-quality services and efficient management and as a listed company that meets best standards and practices in Viet Nam and globally,” she said, adding that in addition to delivering new value to passengers, the carrier hopes to bring new added value to investors and Vietnamese and international markets.

Vietjet, the first privately-owned commercial airline in Viet Nam, is one of the world's most efficient carriers as it began generating profits in its second year of operation.

The airline continued to post positive growth through 2016, with revenue of more than VND27.5 trillion ($1.21 billion) and profit of VND2.39 trillion ($105 million).

Last year, it transported more than 14 million passengers, achieving a load factor of 88.9 per cent and effectively contributing to the development of Viet Nam’s aviation industry.

The airline’s operations also registered strong performance in terms of safety and reliability compared with other airlines in the Asia-Pacific region. It operated a total of 84,535 flights, accounting for 121,213 flight hours last year. — VNS