Taiwan shares jump 846 points on Nvidia boost

Taipei, Nov. 20 (CNA) Taiwan shares surged on Thursday, with the benchmark Taiex jumping 846.24 points after stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings from U.S. chipmaker Nvidia Corp. sparked a broad rebound in AI-related stocks and pushed Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) sharply higher.

The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), ended up 3.18 percent at 27,426.36, its second-largest single-day points gain after the 1,608-point rally on April 10. Turnover totaled NT$577.02 billion (US$18.48 billion).

Nvidia reported 62 percent revenue growth, beating market expectations and easing concerns about an overheating AI sector. Reports that Washington had approved exports of certain Nvidia chips to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates further lifted sentiment.

TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock on the local market, rose 4.30 percent to NT$1,455. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. gained 3.28 percent to NT$236.5, while Delta Electronics Inc. rose 6.71 percent to NT$954.

Among AI server suppliers, Wiwynn Corp. climbed 3.13 percent to NT$4,280, Wistron Corp. rose 4.38 percent to NT$143, and Quanta Computer Inc. added 2.62 percent to close at NT$274.

Memory chip stocks were mixed. Nanya Technology Corp. fell 2.81 percent to NT$155.5, while Winbond Electronics Corp. lost 2.36 percent to NT$58 after touching its limit-down price. In contrast, Phison Electronics Corp. jumped 5.36 percent to NT$1,180, and Innodisk Corp. rose 1.95 percent to NT$524.

Veteran analyst Wu Wen-bin (吳文彬) said the day's rebound followed a 1,366-point slide over the past five sessions amid fears of an AI bubble. Nvidia's upbeat earnings helped to calm those concerns, he said, adding that TSMC's surge had largely dictated the market's direction.

Wu said AI remains the market's dominant theme but warned that profit taking could occur if the Taiex approaches the 27,000-28,000 range.

Taishin Securities Investment Advisory Vice President Tony Huang (黃文清) said Nvidia's outlook and U.S. export approvals drove strong gains in optical communications, AI server, PCB and related stocks. He said the Taiex will need to climb back above its 20-day moving average to maintain a medium-term uptrend.

Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$13.11 billion worth of shares Thursday, TWSE data showed.