The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the VN-Index is based, was a sea of green with 288 stocks gaining and 157 losing. Seventeen of these stocks hit their ceiling prices, the highest they can go in a trading session.

Total trading volume rose nearly 10 percent over the previous session, to VND11.71 trillion ($507.14 million), nearly half of it involving the VN30 basket of the HoSE’s 30 largest capped stocks.

The VN30-Index surged 1.05 percent, higher than the general market, with 24 tickers gaining against just three losing.

Topping gains this session were stocks of banks and financial institutions. SSI of top brokerage Saigon Securities Inc. and VCB of state-owned banking giant Vietcombank were the best performers, both gaining 3.7 percent.

Of state-owned banks, BID of BIDV was up 2.6 percent, MBB of mid-sized Military Bank rose 0.2 percent, while CTG of VietinBank kept its opening price.

In the private banking sector, TCB of Techcombank added 3 percent, HDB of HDBank 2 percent, VPB of VPBank 0.4 percent, EIB of Eximbank 0.3 percent, and STB of Sacombank, 0.3 percent.

VIC of private conglomerate Vingroup, HoSE’s largest cap, gained 1 percent, while both its subsidiaries, VHM of real estate developer Vinhomes and VRE of mall operator Vincom Retail, added 0.7 percent each.

Other major gainers this session included NVL of real estate developer Novaland, up 3.6 percent, PLX of gasoline distributor Petrolimex, up 3.2 percent, and FPT of IT services giant FPT, with 2.3 percent.

The only stocks that lost this session were SAB of major brewer Sabeco, down 2.7 percent, PNJ of jewelry retailer Phu Nhuan Jewelry, down 0.1 percent, and MSN of food conglomerate Masan Group, also down 0.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX), Vietnam’s second main bourse and home to small and mid-caps, saw its index rise 1.36 percent, and the UPCOM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market added 0.46 percent.

Foreign investors turned net buyers to the tune of VND28 billion on all three bourses, with buying pressure mostly on VCB of Vietcombank and VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk, which added 0.5 percent this session.