TSMC lifts Taiex as foreign institutions sell NT$8.1 billion

By Nathan Brooks

TSMC rose 0.63% to NT$2,400.00 on Oct. 27, trimming the Taiex’s losses by about 160 points and turning Taiwan’s benchmark into positive territory.

The Taiex finished up 54.80 points, or 0.12%, at 46,096.23. Turnover reached NT$976.55 billion, or US$29.96 billion, as the index traded between 45,676.67 and 46,585.45.

Dealers described a seesaw session. The market opened higher after an overnight rally in U.S. technology stocks, but later selling pushed the Taiex below its previous close before bargain hunters returned, particularly for TSMC.

The advance was narrow, and the reason was concentrated. For scale, the benchmark’s 54.80-point gain was smaller than the roughly 160 points of losses erased by TSMC’s recovery. The semiconductor subindex gained 0.46%.

What drove the reversal?

Cathay Futures analyst Tsai Ming-han said he thought the broader market was consolidating after recent volatility. He said investors tended to lock in profits when the index staged a technical rebound.

“Fortunately, faith in TSMC’s fundamentals remained unchanged because it has maintained its lead over its peers, prompting investors to buy the stock on the dip,” Tsai said.

TSMC represents more than 40% of Taiwan’s total market capitalization. It reached an intraday low of NT$2,380.00 before closing at NT$2,400.00, and its recovery helped the overall market erase its earlier decline. One heavyweight had done most of the talking.

Which semiconductor stocks moved?

Bargain hunting spread to memory-chip suppliers:

• Macronix International Co. rose 3.52% to close at NT$103.00.
• Nanya Technology Corp. gained 6.52% to close at NT$441.00.

Smartphone chip designer MediaTek Inc. moved in the other direction, falling 1.25% to close at NT$3,960.00. Other technology-related names also split:

• Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., an iPhone assembler and artificial intelligence server maker, rose 1.02% to close at NT$247.50.
• Delta Electronics Inc., a power-supply maker, fell 3.21% to close at NT$1,510.00.

What happened outside technology?

Old-economy stocks were mixed as the market consolidated, dealers said:

• Eclat Textile Co. fell 0.40% to close at NT$323.00.
• Makalot Industrial Co. fell 0.90% to close at NT$207.00.
• Nan Ya Plastics Corp. fell 1.16% to close at NT$297.50.
• Formosa Plastics Corp. gained 0.81% to close at NT$74.40.
• Uni-President Enterprises Corp., a food brand, gained 0.75% to close at NT$80.20.
• Wei Chuan Foods Corp. gained 0.87% to close at NT$11.55.

The financial sector rose 0.74% overall:

• Fubon Financial Holding Co. gained 2.21% to close at NT$162.00.
• Cathay Financial Holding Co. gained 0.44% to close at NT$114.00.
• E. Sun Financial Holding Co. fell 0.60% to close at NT$49.45.

Why did caution remain?

“Despite the rebound, market sentiment stayed cautious as investors waited for results from major U.S. cloud service providers including Microsoft, Google’s parent Alphabet and Amazon for a clearer picture of AI spending,” Tsai said.

Foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$8.10 billion worth of main-board shares Tuesday, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange. The net selling sat uneasily beside the benchmark gain.

Going forward, the cloud results investors are waiting on will provide the next read on AI spending, while TSMC’s lead over its peers remains the stated basis for renewed dip buying.