HÀ NỘI — Benchmark indices reversed course in the last minutes of trading, snapping the two-day falling streak on bottom-fishing force, with cash flows focusing on large-cap stocks in the banking and securities sectors.

The VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) finished higher at 1,637.32 points, up 12.79 points, or 0.79 per cent. The index lost over 70 points in the last two consecutive sessions.

In the morning session, the VN-Index fluctuated considerably, moving between positive and negative territory. Analysts had highlighted the critical support level of 1,610 points, noting that the index had repeatedly approached this threshold, prompting buying interest and narrowing the extent of the decline.

Despite selling pressure dominating much of the session, it eased towards the end of the day as bottom-fishing activities kicked in.

The market's breadth was positive as the number of gainers surpassed that of decliners by 168 to 130. However, liquidity fell sharply by 40.6 per cent from the previous session to VNĐ31.6 trillion (US$1.2 billion).

The 30 biggest stocks tracker, VN30-Index, also increased by 17.95 points, or nearly 1 per cent, to 1,825.17 points. Fifteen stocks in the VN30 basket ticked up, while 11 went down and four ended unchanged.

On the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index gained 3.25 points, or 1.2 per cent, to 274.82 points. During the session, over 95.4 million shares were traded on the northern bourse, worth VNĐ2.1 trillion.

Two Vin-family stocks significantly impacted the recovery. Vingroup (VIC) surged by 3.4 per cent, while VinHomes (VHM) gained 1.4 per cent. The positive movements in these key stocks provided crucial support for the index.

The banking sector also saw strong performance, with several banks experiencing big gains. VPBank (VPB) led the way, rising by 3.8 per cent. Other lenders, including HDBank (HDB), Sahabank (SHB), Eximbank (EIB), Techcombank (TCB) and Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MSB), all reversed earlier losses to close higher.

Similarly, the securities sector sent out positive signals after a deep correction. VIX Securities Corporation (VIX) rebounded, increasing by 6 per cent, while SSI Securities Corporation (SSI) and Vietcap Securities (VCI) both gained about 4.5 per cent from their reference prices.

Smaller-cap stocks, including HCM City Securities Company (HCM), VNDirect Securities Corporation (VND) and Tien Phong Securities Corporation (ORS), also saw gains ranging from 1 per cent to 3 per cent.

Foreign investor activities continued to draw attention, as they net sold nearly VNĐ871.3 billion on HoSE but net bought VNĐ21.34 points. — BIZHUB/VNS