HÀ NỘI – Shares edged up in the last minutes on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange Wednesday, pushed by strong growth of heavyweight stocks like Vinamilk, Vincom Retail and Vietcombank.

The benchmark VN-Index added 0.39 per cent to close at 922.56 points. The southern market index also increased more than 0.3 per cent on Tuesday.

Meanwhile on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index remained below the threshold, ending Wednesday’s trade slightly lower than Tuesday’s close at 103.9 points. This was the second day the stocks on the northern bourse were traded in the red.

Shares were volatile in the morning session with strong selling forces in the petroleum and banking groups. The VN-Index at one time fell below 910 points.

At the end of the afternoon session, stocks bounced back on the surge of buying demand at low price range. Major stocks such as Vietcombank (VCB), Vinamilk (VNM) and Vincom Retail (VRE) grew substantially, between 2.3-3.1 per cent each, contributing to the index’s recovery.

Other bank and real estate stocks also saw good performance. TPBank (TPB), Military Bank (MBB), Vinhomes (VHM) increased 1-2.7 per cent.

By contrast, oil and gas stocks remained in the red with PV Gas (GAS), PetroVietnam Drilling and Wells Service (PVD) and PetroVietnam Technical Services (PVS) all decreasing by more than 1 per cent.

On the global markets, oil prices lost steam among concerns that an expected supply cut by OPEC will be weighed by a surge in US production output. Both Brent and US crude futures were down below 1 per cent on Tuesday.

 “The VN-Index is likely to keep rallying in the next day. However, the market is forecast to experience a divergence with some volatility and re treat in the trading session,” said Khiếu Trọng Huy, a stock analyst at Bảo Việt Securities Co, in a daily market report.

According to BIDV Securities Co, the market increased slightly but the market liquidity was still low and investors should watch the world’s development cautiously.

More than 183 million shares worth combined VNĐ4.4 trillion (US$189 million) were traded in the two markets, slightly lower than Tuesday’s figures.

Foreign investors increased selling out. They were responsible for total net sell value of VNĐ223 billion on the two exchanges on Wednesday. Especially, foreign traders have net sold for eight consecutive sessions for total value of VNĐ1.2 trillion. – VNS