Taiwan shares end down ahead of U.S. job data

Taipei, June 6 (CNA) Taiwan shares closed slightly lower Friday, retreating from earlier gains as investors remained cautious ahead of the release of U.S. jobs data, dealers said.

The bellwether electronics sector remained sluggish throughout the session despite some late buying, while select non-tech stocks, particularly in the financial and petrochemical sectors, drew interest and lent support to the broader market, dealers added.

The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), dipped 13.77 points, or 0.06 percent, to close at 21,660.66 after swinging between 21,606.70 and 21,702.46. Turnover stood at NT$294.17 billion (US$9.83 billion).

"Global markets welcomed the phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, hoping it would ease trade tensions, but investors remain focused on U.S. economic fundamentals," said Kevin Su, an analyst at Hua Nan Securities.

"Attention has shifted to U.S. non-farm payrolls for clues on how Trump's tariffs are affecting the economy," Su said.

Su said large-cap electronics stocks faced pressure after the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.83 percent overnight.

Contract chipmaker TSMC, the local market's most heavily weighted stock, slipped 0.30 percent to NT$995.00, dragging the electronics index down 0.24 percent.

"TSMC faced stiff technical resistance near the NT$1,000 mark," Su said. "The stock will likely continue to consolidate as the market watches how Trump's semiconductor tariffs play out."

Among other semiconductor stocks, Global Unichip Corp., TSMC's ASIC design unit, lost 3.81 percent to close at NT$1,135.00, while IC packaging and testing firm ASE Technology Holding Co. dipped 0.36 percent to NT$139.00.

Bucking the downturn, smartphone IC designer MediaTek rose 2.81 percent to close at NT$1,280.00.

Following a 1.36 percent decline by American AI chipmaker Nvidia Corp. overnight, iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. fell 1.61 percent to close at NT$153.00, while Quanta Computer Inc., another AI server supplier, declined 1.95 percent to end at NT$276.00.

"The silver lining was that certain financial and old economy stocks showed resilience, as rotational buying by bargain hunters provided support," Su said.

The financial sector rose 0.76 percent with Fubon Financial Holding Co. up 0.80 percent to close at NT$87.80, and Cathay Financial Holding Co. up 0.30 percent to end at NT$66.30. In addition, Mega Financial Holding Co. rose 1.26 percent to close at NT$40.20 and E. Sun Financial Holding Co. ended up 1.31 percent at NT$30.90.

Following a rebound in international crude oil prices overnight, Formosa Plastics Corp. rose 2.92 percent to close at NT$35.30, while Nan Ya Plastics Corp. gained 1.74 percent to end at NT$29.30. However, Su cautioned that petrochemical stocks remain pressured by a global supply glut.

"Compared with the U.S. markets, the Taiex showed weaker technical performance, as the index remained below its 240-day moving average of around 22,296 points," Su said. "With ongoing tariff concerns weighing on sentiment, a strong rally for the index appears unlikely."

According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$13.67 billion worth of shares on the main board Friday.