Steady buying helped brighten Viet Nam's stock indexes in this Thursday. In HCM City, the VN-Index rose 1.23 per cent to 430.72 points. 198 stocks advanced; 42 declined and 34 closed unchanged.


Among the 50 stocks to match their ceiling prices were mid caps such as D2D, up to VND33,700; SFI, up to VND15,700; TIX, up to VND45,900 and CLG, up to VND30,000.
The number matching the floor prices dropped to just six.
The largest capitalised stocks gained only slightly but their prices remained stable.
These included Phu My Fertiliser (DPM), up VND1,300; the software maker FPT Corp (FPT) and Sai Gon Securities Inc(SSI), each up VND500; and Ocean Group (OGC), up VND200.
Some blue chips were unchanged.
These included insurer Bao Viet Holding (BVH), Eximbank (EIB), Masan Group (MSN) and property trader Quoc Cuong Gia Lai (QCG).
VietinBank (CTG) down VND100 and Sacombank (STB) down VND200, were the only blue chips to fall.
Trading volume was steady at 32.4 million shares for a value of VND683.8 billion (US$32.6 million).
In Ha Noi, the HNX-Index rose for a second day - by 2.93 per cent - to return to above 100, at 100.59 points.
Volume was again low at 28.3 million shares worth of VND482.5 billion ($22.9 million).
Securities stocks [KLS, APS, BVS, ...] gained 1.5 per cent and banking stocks [SHB, ACB] 0.1 per cent.
PetroVietnam stocks [PVS, PVX, PVI, ...] and Vinaconex stocks [VCG, VC1, VC9] also rallied.