The index stayed in the green throughout the day, mostly in the 1,180 range. It ended with a 11.65-point gain, the first double-digit increase in the last eight sessions.

Foreign investors were net sellers for the 15th session but their net selling value fell to the lowest in the last five sessions to VND267 billion ($11.65 million).

Selling pressure was strongest on VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk, HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group and VTP of delivery company Viettel Post JSC.

Trading value on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), on which the VN-Index is based, fell nearly 16 percent to VND15.11 trillion ($655 million). The bourse saw 297 stocks gain and 165 lose.

The VN30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks on the HoSE, saw 27 stocks gain, led by VPB of private lender VPBank, up 4.2 percent to a new all-time peak of VND43,750.

VPB has been a sought-after ticker since the market plunged at the end of January. It has gained over 47 percent since then.

The bank was followed by PDR of Phat Dat Real Estate Development JSC, up 3.9 percent, and STB of Ho Chi Minh City-based lender Sacombank, up 3.2 percent.

Other banking blue chips that ended in the green include BID of state-owned lender BIDV, up 3.1 percent, and TCB of the largest private lender Techcombank, up 2.2 percent.

BID, however, is still struggling to return to this year’s peak in January, while TCB this year had repeatedly hit new all-time highs.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, surged 2.4 percent, while the Unlisted Public Companies Market rose 0.12 percent.