Taiwan shares end at high ahead of TSMC investor conference

Taipei, Oct. 16 (CNA) Taiwan shares rose to a new high Thursday, as investors bet on artificial intelligence development ahead of contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s (TSMC) investor conference later in the day.

The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), ended up 372.16 points, or 1.36 percent, at 27,647.87 after moving between 27,337.32 and 27,732.78. Turnover totaled NT$546.56 billion (US$17.83 billion).

"In the current boom of the AI era, TSMC continued to dominate the trading today," Concord Securities analyst Kerry Huang said. "Judging from the stock's movement in Taiwan and on the U.S. market, I think many investors have anticipated the chipmaker to report strong results and guidance."

After its American depositary receipts rose 2.96 percent overnight, TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock in the local market, gained 1.37 percent to close at a new high of NT$1,485.00, contributing 160 points to the Taiex's rise and sending the electronics subindex up 1.69 percent.

Memory chip suppliers kept steaming ahead as product prices continue to balloon, with Winbond Electronics Corp. and Nanya Electronics Corp. up 10 percent, the maximum daily increase, to end at NT$44.00 and NT$94.90, respectively.

Smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. rose 1.14 percent to close at NT$1,330.00 and IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. gained 7.58 percent to end at NT$191.50.

"Another bright spot was that Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. came out of its recent stagnation amid optimism toward its AI server sales, adding momentum to the entire market," Huang said.

Hon Hai, second to TSMC in terms of market value, rose 7.99 percent to close at NT$223.00. In addition, LITE-ON Technology Corp., which manufactures power management solutions for AI servers, gained 4.64 percent to end at NT$169.00.

In the old economy sector, Huang said, select stocks attracted strong buying due to their links to the tech sector.

Cable and wire supplier Walsin Lihwa Corp., which has a stake in Winbond Electronics, surged 10 percent to close at NT$29.85. Teco Electric & Machinery Co., which has formed an AI partnership with Hon Hai, gained 2.78 percent to end at NT$111.00. In addition, Nan Ya Plastics Corp. grew 2.53 percent to close at NT$41.45 on its investments in Nanya Technology.

Other old economy stocks appeared mixed, with Eclat Textile Co. up 0.46 percent to close at NT$441.50 but rival Far Eastern New Century Corp. down 0.92 percent to end at NT$27.05.

In the financial sector, which lost 0.32 percent, Cathay Financial Holding Co. fell 0.90 percent to close at NT$65.80, while Fubon Financial Holding Co. ended up 0.22 percent at NT$89.80.

"The recent strong gains could pave the path to a technical pullback soon," Huang said. "How trade tensions between the United States and China will evolve could impact market sentiment."

According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$11.78 billion worth of shares on the main board on Thursday.