The index gradually climbed throughout the day and closed with a 10-point gain after losing nearly 13 points in the last two sessions.

Trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the index is based, remained mostly unchanged at VND19.55 trillion ($859.67 million).

Foreign investors were net sellers for the 10th straight session to the tune of VND538 billion, with strongest pressure on VHM of real estate giant Vinhomes and VIC of biggest private conglomerate Vingroup.

Latest data from the Vietnam Securities Depository showed in the first eight months, 842,405 new securities accounts were opened, higher than the combined figure of the past three years.

The VN30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 21 tickers in the green Thursday, led by MWG of electronics retail chain Mobile World with a 6.7 percent gain to a new peak.

The ticker has gained over 50 percent this year on the back of strong financial figures reported despite Covid-19 challenges.

PNJ of Phu Nhuan Jewelry rose 5 percent with trading volume surging 73 percent from the average of the last 10 sessions.

TPB of private TPBank gained 4.7 percent to the highest since early July.

Other gainers included VJC of budget airline Vietjet, up 3.5 percent, and PLX of fuel distributor Petrolimex, up 2.6 percent.

On the losing side PDR of Phat Dat Real Estate Development fell 2.1 percent, while HDB of HDBank lost 1.3 percent.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, rose 0.91 percent while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market gained 0.5 percent.