VN-Index nears 1,300 points

The index remained in the green throughout the day and closed with a 14-point gain. In the last four sessions it gained over 45 points, or 3.6 percent.

The index is now two points from breaking an unprecedented 1,300, forecast by several brokerages earlier this year thanks to the surging number of new investors seeking to profit from a bull market.

Trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the index is based, stayed mostly unchanged at VND23.64 trillion ($1.02 billion). The bourse saw 259 gainers and 158 losers.

The VN30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 23 tickers in the green with CTG of state-owned lender VietinBank the biggest contributor to VN-Index's gain with a 2.92-point push.

It was also the top blue-chip gainer with a 6.1 percent surge to a new peak, having risen 48 percent this year.

VHM of real estate giant Vinhomes contributed 1.87 points to the index with a 2 percent gain. It has closed in the green for four consecutive sessions to reach the highest level in over a month.

Other major contributors include BID of state-owned lender BIDV (1.34 points) and VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk (1.11 points).

BID rose 2.8 percent to a four-month high, while VNM gained 2.2 percent, its fourth session in the green.

On the losing side, PLX of fuel distributor Petrolimex led with a 1.9 percent drop, followed by NVL of real estate developer Novaland Group, down 1.7 percent.

Foreign investors once again ignored the gaining market and net sold to the tune of VND645 billion, having sold 10 sessions in a row. Strongest selling pressure was seen in HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group and CTG.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, rose 0.79 percent, while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market surged 1.23 percent.