The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the VN-Index is based, saw 205 tickers gain and 180 lose. Total trading volume rose slightly over the previous session to VND4.5 trillion ($193.5 million), the same level as last month’s average daily trading.

In the green again, the VN-Index marked its seventh gaining session among the last eight after edging down a miniscule 0.01 percent in Tuesday session.

Analysts said the stock market was in part being propped up by excess cash from investors trying to find an alternative stream of income at a time when social distancing measures have been imposed in several locations in Vietnam.

Plummeting gold prices in the last five days has also made equity markets a more attractive investment option, they said. Prices of SJC gold, Vietnam’s national gold brand, fell from VND62.4 million ($2,683) per tael last Friday afternoon to VND51.47 million ($2,213) Wednesday morning, a plunge of 17.5 percent.

Brokerage Bao Viet Securities also noted that the State Bank of Vietnam had on Monday issued a document instructing banks to reduce operating costs, salaries and bonuses for staff so that they can continue lowering retail interest rates to support Covid-19 affected businesses.

On Wednesday, the VN30-Index for the basket of HoSE’s 30 largest capped stocks climbed 0.49 percent, with 18 tickers rising and 8 falling.

MBB of Military Bank and BID of BIDV, two state-owned lenders, were the best performers this session, gaining 2.1 percent and 1.8 percent respectively. In the same group, CTG of VietinBank rose 0.9 percent, while VCB of Vietcombank kept its opening price.

They were followed by three oil and gas tickers, PLX of petroleum distributor Petrolimex, GAS of energy giant PetroVietnam Gas, and POW of electricity generator PetroVietnam Power added 1.8 percent, 1.7 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively.

As of 3.43 p.m., the benchmark Brent Crude was up 1.03 percent over the previous session to $44.96 per barrel, while WTI crude was up 1.13 percent to $42.08 per barrel.

Other major gainers this session were VPB of private VPBank, up 1.2 percent, FPT of IT services firm FPT, 1.1 percent, TCB of private Techcombank, 1 percent, and VJC of budget carrier Vietjet Air, also 1 percent.

In the opposite direction, real estate stocks ROS of FLC Faros and KDH of Khang Dien House went down 2.6 percent and 1 percent, respectively.

PNJ of jewelry retailer Phu Nhuan Jewelry fell 0.9 percent, MSN of food conglomerate Masan Group, 0.7 percent, and VIC of private conglomerate Vingroup, HoSE’s largest cap, 0.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, fell 0.17 percent, while the UPCoM-Index for stocks on the Unlisted Public Companies Market added 0.46 percent.

Foreign investors continued to be net sellers for the fourth straight session to the tune of VND98 billion ($4.21 million) on all three bourses, focusing on offloading VHM of Vinhomes, which kept its opening price, and NVL of real estate developer Novaland, which went down 0.5 percent.