Taiex smashes closing record as TSMC ends at new high

Taipei, Jan. 28 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan closed at a record level Wednesday as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) ended at a new high amid optimism that U.S. tech firms will deliver positive leads during the earnings season, dealers said.

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's (TWSE) benchmark index, ended up 485.90 points, or 1.50 percent, at the day's high of 32,803.82, off a low of 32,281.76. Turnover totaled NT$830.99 billion (US$26.57 billion).

"Today's strong buying reflected an upbeat mood about the U.S. earnings season during the current AI boom," Mega International Investment Services analyst Alex Huang said, referring to Microsoft and Meta investor conferences slated for Wednesday U.S. time.

"Retail investors continued to serve as the major buyers, picking up TSMC shares, the most important AI stock in Taiwan, as the local stock market remained awash in liquidity," Huang said.

TSMC, which accounts for over 40 percent of total market value, rose 2.25 percent to close at NT$1,820.00. The stock's gains contributed about 320 points to the Taiex's increase and sent the electronics index up 1.81 percent.

Memory chip suppliers kept steaming ahead on growing product prices, with Winbond Electronics Corp. soaring 10 percent, the maximum daily increase, to end at NT$127.00, and Nanya Technology Corp. surging 7.22 percent to close at NT$297.00. However, United Microelectronics Corp., a smaller contract chipmaker, retreated from Tuesday's 10 percent hike, ending down 0.39 percent at NT$75.90.

Also in the tech sector, shares in power management solutions provider Delta Electronics Inc. rose 2.40 percent to close at NT$1,280.00, while AI server maker and iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. ended unchanged at NT$225.50.

Dealers said petrochemical stocks benefited from a hike in crude oil prices amid geopolitical concerns about Iran, with Formosa Chemical & Fibre Corp. jumping 8.75 percent to close at NT$44.10, and Formosa Petrochemical Corp. rising 2.13 percent to end at NT$52.70.

Electric machinery moved higher on the government's efforts to improve electricity grid networks around Taiwan, dealers said. Among them, Shihlin Electric & Engineering Corp. surged 10 percent to close at NT$246.00, and Fortune Electric Co. ended up 2.46 percent at NT$1,040.00.

Bucking the upturn, Eclat Textile Corp. lost 1.22 percent to close at NT$406.00, while Far Eastern New Century Corp., another textile supplier, ended unchanged at NT$28.30.

In the financial sector, which rose only 0.05 percent, Fubon Financial Holding Co. rose 0.11 percent to close at NT$92.50, but Cathay Financial Holding Co. ended down 0.13 percent at NT$75.80.

"After recent significant gains, it is possible the Taiex encounter technical resistance ahead of 33,000 points," Huang said.

According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$33.28 billion of shares on the main board Wednesday.