Taiwan shares end higher as TSMC smashes closing records

Taipei, Sept. 9 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan closed at another high Wednesday as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) smashed its closing records amid optimism over artificial intelligence development, dealers said.

The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), rose 337.41 points, or 1.36 percent, to end at 25,192.59 after moving between 25,032.88 and 25,272.23, beating the previous closing high of 24,855.18 set Tuesday. Turnover totaled NT$523.46 billion (US$17.29 billion).

"Investors simply seized on a spike in TSMC's ADRs [American depositary receipts] overnight to pick up the stock in Taipei today," Concord Securities analyst Kerry Huang said. "The buying reflected high hopes for AI demand, and TSMC is the only supplier of advanced chips for AI gadgets."

"The turnover topping the NT$500 billion level showed investors were willing to chase prices, betting on a higher Taiex down the road," Huang added.

After its ADRs rose 1.51 percent on the U.S. market Tuesday, TSMC shares in Taipei gained 2.08 percent to close at a record high of NT$1,225.00, after hitting an intraday high of NT$1,230.00.

TSMC's gains contributed about 200 points to the Taiex's advance and pushed the bellwether electronics index up 1.84 percent. However, other semiconductor stocks ended mixed.

IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. gained 1.20 percent to close at NT$169.00, and application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designer AIchip Technologies Ltd. rose 0.64 percent to NT$3,940.00. In contrast, smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. fell 1.32 percent to NT$1,490.00.

Also buoyed by AI enthusiasm, iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., second only to TSMC in market value, rose 1.20 percent to NT$210.00. Delta Electronics Inc., a supplier of power management solutions for AI devices, soared 6.76 percent to NT$837.00.

"Ample liquidity also contributed to the Taiex's gains as foreign institutional investors continued to move funds into the region on expectations of a rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve," Huang said.

According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$47.62 billion worth of shares on the main board Wednesday, following a net buy of NT$35.65 billion the previous session.

While the electronics sector drove the Taiex higher, many nontech stocks lagged, though there were exceptions, Huang noted.

Teco Electric & Machinery Co. was among them, surging 10 percent, the daily maximum, to NT$87.50. "Many investors have high hopes that the company will benefit from its partnership with Hon Hai to boost AI data center capabilities," Huang said.

In the old economy sector, Nan Ya Plastics Corp. lost 1.16 percent to NT$38.20, and Formosa Chemicals & Fiber Corp. fell 1.03 percent to NT$28.70, while Formosa Plastics Corp. closed unchanged at NT$38.15.

In the financial sector, which rose 0.55 percent, Fubon Financial Holding Co. gained 1.39 percent to NT$87.60, and Cathay Financial Holding Co. added 1.25 percent to NT$64.90.

"After a recent strong showing, the Taiex is approaching the nearest technical resistance at around 25,300 points, as much of the AI momentum has already been priced in," Huang said.