Vietnam’s benchmark VN-Index rose 0.79% to 1,236.60 points Friday.

The index closed 9.64 points higher after dropping 24.55 points in the previous session.

Trading on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange decreased by 23% to VND16.387 trillion (US$649.8 million).

The VN-30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 22 tickers gained.

POW of electricity producer Petrovietnam Power Corporation saw the biggest growth of 4.94%, followed by PLX of fuel distributor Petrolimex with a 4.86% increase and SSI of brokerage SSI Securities Corporation, up 3.1%.

Six blue chips fell. VCB of state-owned lender Vietcombank slid 2.2%, VRE of retail real estate arm Vincom Retail closed 1.4% lower, and FPT of IT giant FPT Corporation dropped 1.3%.

Foreign investors were net buyers to the tune of VND744 billion, mainly buying VNM of dairy giant Vinamilk and FPT.

The HNX-Index for stocks on the Hanoi Stock Exchange, home to mid and small caps, rose 1.02%, while the UPCoM-Index for the Unlisted Public Companies Market went up 0.28%.