Taiex posts 2nd highest gains on hope of Middle East de-escalation

Taipei, April 1 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan soared over 1,400 points, the second-highest daily point gain ever on Wednesday, with buying sparked by the possibility of de-escalation in military conflicts in the Middle East, dealers said.

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark index, ended up 1,451.83 points, or 4.58 percent, at 33,174.82 after moving between 31,892.33 and 33,182.22. Turnover totaled NT$616.12 billion (US$19.13 billion).

Wednesday's point gains were the second-largest in history after an increase of 1,608.27 points on April 10, 2025.

The strong showing on the main board came after U.S. President Donald Trump said the war with Iran would probably end in two to three weeks and Tehran said it had "the necessary will" to bring the conflicts to an end, dealers said.

"Investors simply seized on the positive news to pick up shares that had been hammered in recent sessions by the war, in particular those in the electronics sector, following a rally among U.S. tech giants overnight," MasterLink Securities analyst Tom Tang said.

After its American depositary receipts (ADRs) rose 6.78 percent overnight, contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which accounts for more than 40 percent of total market value, gained 5.40 percent to close at NT$1,855.00. The stock contributed about 760 points to the Taiex's rise and sent the electronics index up 5.19 percent.

"TSMC was attractive after recent heavy losses amid geopolitical unease," Tang said. "Its sound fundamentals during the AI boom could lead the stock to challenge the nearest technical resistance around NT$1,950 soon."

Among other semiconductor heavyweights, shares in IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. surged 10 percent, the maximum daily increase, to end at NT$361.00, and memory chip supplier Nanya Technology Corp. climbed 6.30 percent to close at NT$211.00. However, smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. ended down 1.68 percent at NT$1,465.00.

Also in the tech sector, AI server maker and iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. rose 5.07 percent to close at NT$197.00, and power management solution provider Delta Electronics Inc. gained 6.88 percent to end at NT$1,475.00.

Buying spread to the old economy sector with the petrochemical index up 3.46 percent. Nan Ya Plastics Corp., the parent of Nanya Technology, gained 6.50 percent to close at NT$78.70, and its affiliate Formosa Plastics Corp. ended up 1.63 percent at NT$46.65.

In addition, Asia Cement Corp. rose 1.73 percent to close at NT$35.30 and rival TCC Group Holdings Co. gained 3.04 percent to end at NT$23.70.

In the financial sector, which rose 2.52 percent, Cathay Financial Holding Co. grew 2.28 percent to close at NT$71.90, and Fubon Financial Holding Co. rose 2.09 percent to end at NT$87.80.

Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$23.25 billion of shares on the main board Wednesday, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.