VPbank's employees wearing masks during transactions. The bank shares led the market's gain yesterday, up nearly 3.1 per cent. Photo baodautu.vn

HÀ NỘI — The market ended higher on Friday with improved liquidity. However foreign investors returned to net sell a value of over VNĐ1.7 trillion (US$75 million) on the southern bourse. 

On the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index inched up 6.77 points, or 0.5 per cent, higher to close the last trading day of the week at 1,352.64 points. The market’s breadth remained positive with 280 stocks climbing, while 126 stocks declined. 

The liquidity was higher than yesterday as more than 852.78 million shares were traded on the market, worth over VNĐ25.9 trillion.

The benchmark was boosted by large-cap stocks as investors’ sentiment recovered. The 30 biggest stocks tracker VN30-Index rose 6.61 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 1,455.59 points. Of the VN30 basket, 16 stocks increased, while 13 stocks slid and one ended flat. 

Bank stocks dominated the market yesterday, with VPBank (VPB) the biggest gainer. The bank shares edged 3.08 per cent higher to VNĐ67,000 per share. 

Other bank stocks in the top five influencers were BIDV (BID), Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPB) and Techcombank (TCB). These stocks rose in a range of 1.32 - 5.56 per cent. 

Real estate developer Vinhomes (VHM) also played a big role in supporting the market’s rally yesterday, with a gain of 1.37 per cent. 

Nevertheless, selling pressure was still persistent on some large-cap stocks, causing uncertainty for the market. 

Of which, Masan Group (MSN) posted the biggest losses yesterday, down 2.54 per cent to VNĐ146,000 per share. It was followed by Vingroup (VIC) and Vietcombank (VIC), down 1.14 per cent and 0.92 per cent, respectively. 

In a daily report to investors, Việt Dragon Securities Corporation (VDSC) said that the market still couldn’t escape the sideways trend as it hadn’t received strong enough support from cash flows.

This caused investors to struggle to choose stock portfolios for short-term investments, showing signs of uncertainty in the market. Therefore, investors should limit trades and wait for new opportunities in the future.

The HNX-Index on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX) also finished higher yesterday, up 4.73 points, or 1.34 per cent, to 357.97 points. 

Investors poured over VNĐ4 trillion into the northern market, equivalent to a trading volume of nearly 172.7 million shares. 

On the other hand, foreign investors continued to flee from the country’s stock market, as they net sold a total of VNĐ1.27 trillion on both two main exchanges. 

Of which, they net sold a value of more than VNĐ1.7 trillion on HoSE, while net bought a value of VNĐ438.8 billion on HNX.

In a monthly report, Maybank Kim Eng Securities Limited (MBKE) said that investors’ general sentiment had shifted to defensive.

However, with the better vaccination rate outlook in the fourth quarter of 2021 and in 2022, the securities firm expects Việt Nam to reopen the economy starting from October and the economy can recover strongly after slowing down in the third quarter. 

“It's a tough time for positions, but as for investors, we believe this creates opportunities to build positions on good stocks at very reasonable valuations," said MBKE.

MBKE said that the market would face challenges in September when the ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks have caused large damage to the economy. The firm also expects the market benchmark to be consolidated in the long term.

It keeps the forecast of the VN-Index unchanged at 1,500 points at the end of this year, and continues to recommend investors to consider cyclical stocks, including materials, real estate, bank and retail stocks. VNS