The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange moved up for the third straight session over speculation on third quarter earnings results remaining healthy.

VN-Index, the measure of 174 stocks on the bourse, moved up 8.6 points, 1.57 percent, to close at 556.59. Of the index members, 92 stocks advanced, 59 dropped, and 23 were unchanged.

Trading volume accounted to 65.5 million shares worth VND2.85 trillion.

“Information about dividend plans and third-quarter earnings results released by listed firms will continue to drive market sentiment this week,” Bao Viet Securities Co. said in a report, adding that it expects the VN-Index to fluctuate between 525 and 560 points this week.

The Southern Rubber Industry Joint Stock Company (CSM), known as Casumina, gained 4.6 percent to close at VND91,000. The rubber maker announced on the exchange’s website that its estimated third-quarter pretax profits reached VND241 billion, equivalent to 105.14 percent of its 2009 target.

Casumina also announced that Nguyen Thi Ngan, sister of supervisory board member Nguyen Thi Le, will start selling her entire holdings of 947 shares tomorrow.

Ba Ria – Vung Tau House Development Joint Stock Company (HDC), known as Hodeco, was also among the gainers, rising 1.57 percent to VND64,500.

The company planned to sell 201,130 shares it had bought back earlier to boost its working capital, according to a statement on the exchange’s website. The sales will start on September 18.

Dong Do Marine Joint Stock Company (DDM) lost marginally 0.63 percent to VND15,900. Deputy general director Nguyen Thanh Tinh sold 22,700 shares to cut his holdings to 45,400 this month, according to a statement on the bourse’s website.

Cables and Telecommunications Material Joint Stock Company (SAM) surged by the five percent daily limit to close at VND33,900. The firm also announced on the exchange’s website that it would sell two million shares it had bought back, on- and off-market, in a bid to raise capital for investment projects this year.

At the smaller bourse in Hanoi, the HNX-Index advanced 2.65 points, 1.57 percent, to close at 171.83.

The UPCoM-Index of the unlisted stock slipped 0.42 point, 0.67 percent, to close at 62.64 as of 11 am.