TSMC hits new high of NT$1,080 as Taiex closes at record 24,390 points

Taipei, July 11 (CNA) Taiwan shares hit new heights on Thursday, closing at 24,390.03 points as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) rose 3.35 percent to close at NT$1,080.00 (US$33.21).

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's (TWSE) weighted index, ended up 382.95 points, or 1.60 percent, at 24,390.03 after hitting an intraday high of 24,416.67. Turnover totaled NT$556.93 billion.

TSMC

TSMC, the local market's most heavily weighted stock, led the upturn, while financial stocks also steamed ahead to fuel the rally.

Taipei-listed shares of TSMC climbed to a new high of NT$1,080, tracking a jump in its U.S.-listed ADRs, which surged 3.5 percent to a record of US$191.05 on Wednesday.

TSMC's gains in the local stock market Thursday pushed its market capitalization to NT$28 trillion, contributing around 284 points to the Taiex's rise and boosting the electronics index by 2.05 percent.

The world's largest contract chipmaker plays a major role in the local Taiwanese equity benchmark with a more than 35 percent weighting.

July 10: TSMC reports record-high Q2 revenue

Other tech stocks

Meanwhile, iPhone-assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., the second largest stock in terms of market value in Taiwan with a market cap of NT$3.12 trillion, rose 0.89 percent to end at NT$225.5 Thursday.

ASE Technology Holding Co. gained 7.8 percent to close at a record of NT$193.5.

Largan Precision Co., a supplier of smartphone camera lenses to Apple Inc., rose 2.89 percent to close at NT$3,200.

Smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. fell 1.05 percent to close at NT$1,420.

In addition, the financial industry soared 1.18 percent in the session's trading.

Looking ahead

TSMC's gains came amid market expectations that the company's net earnings per share will rise year by year by 2026, and its stock price will attract long-term buyers, according to Taishin China Equity Fund manager Wei Yung-hsiang (魏永祥).

In addition, with TSMC's 35 percent weighting in the Taiex, a strong showing of its shares formed an important support for the weighted index, Wei said.

Looking ahead, Wei said that some factors might affect the market, including subsequent changes in inflation and employment data in the United States, which will affect interest rate trends, and operating prospects for the second half of this year soon to be released by publicly traded companies.

Wei predicts that the stock market is expected to go into a short-term correction pattern but the extent of decline would be limited.

According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors bought shares worth a total of NT$1.26 billion on the main board Thursday.

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