A VietinBank transaction office in Hà Nội City. The bank's CTG shares rose on Friday, helping the VN-Index surpass the 1,325-point mark — Photo baotintuc.vn

HÀ NỘI — The stock market closed the first trading week of March on a positive note, with the VN-Index surpassing the 1,325-point mark.

Despite a slight decline in liquidity, foreign investors returned to net selling, albeit with a lower volume.

On the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index gained 7.83 points, or 0.59 per cent, to close at 1,326.05 points. Market breadth remained relatively balanced, with 153 gainers matching 153 decliners. Trading liquidity slightly decreased to VNĐ20.8 trillion (US$814.9 million), with nearly 960 million shares changing hands.

The VN30-Index, which tracks the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation, also rose by 10.15 points, or 0.74 per cent, to 1,389.77 points. Among the VN30 basket, 16 stocks advanced, ten declined, and four remained unchanged.

According to data from finance.vietstock.vn, leading the market rally was Vingroup Joint Stock Company (VIC), which hit the ceiling price with a 6.97 per cent increase, contributing nearly 2.9 points to the VN-Index.

Other key contributors included The Bank for Foreign Trade of Việt Nam (VCB), which gained 1.71 per cent, and Vinhomes JSC (VHM), which rose 3.1 per cent. Additionally, Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (CTG) and Bank for Investment and Development of Việt Nam (BID) recorded gains of 1.8 per cent and 0.86 per cent, respectively.

On the downside, some large-cap and banking stocks weighed on the market. Việt Nam Rubber Group - Joint Stock Company (GVR) dropped 1.47 per cent, while PetroVietnam Gas Joint Stock Corporation (GAS) fell 0.73 per cent, and Việt Nam Commercial Joint Stock Export Import Bank (EIB) declined 2.48 per cent.

According to analysts at Việt Dragon Securities, “The market continued its upward momentum and successfully surpassed the 1,325-point threshold. Liquidity declined slightly from the previous session but remained at a stable level, indicating that capital inflows are still strong enough to absorb profit-taking pressure.

It is expected that the market will test the 1,330-point level in the next trading session. If the VN-Index can break through this resistance level with strong liquidity, there will be opportunities for further expansion of the uptrend.”

Investment recommendations: Analysts suggested that investors can continue to expect an extended rally in the market. Those looking for short-term opportunities should prioritise stocks with strong upward momentum from well-established support zones or those forming bullish price patterns.

However, investors should also consider locking in short-term profits for stocks that have surged rapidly to resistance levels or are facing difficulties in breaking through key barriers. Rotating capital into better opportunities may be a more strategic approach.

On the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index edged up by 0.17 per cent, closing at 238.41 points. Trading value on the northern exchange exceeded VNĐ1.3 trillion, with over 80 million shares exchanged.

Foreign investors returned to net selling, offloading shares worth VNĐ147 billion on the HoSE and VNĐ31 billion on the HNX. — VNS