Taiwan shares end up at day's high with tech, financial stocks in focus

Taipei, June 16 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan extended momentum from a session earlier and closed at the day's high Tuesday, led by the electronics and financial sectors amid improved sentiment with the United States and Iran scheduled to sign a peace agreement Friday, dealers said.

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark index, ended up 412.20 points, or 0.91 percent, at 45,809.19, off a low of 45,266.34. Turnover totaled NT$1.198 trillion (US$37.97 billion).

"Optimism toward geopolitics continued to drive the local main board higher," Taishin Securities analyst Tom Tang said. "But today's gains lagged behind a strong rally in the United States as some investors appeared reluctant to chase prices amid fears of possible volatility Wednesday, the settlement day of the June futures."

The bellwether electronics index rose 0.94 percent as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which accounts for over 40 percent of total market value, rose 1.05 percent to close at NT$2,400.00, while its American depositary receipts posted higher gains of 4.12 percent overnight.

"TSMC and other major semiconductor stocks benefited from last-ditch buying to help the Taiex move higher amid AI-driven interest," Tang said.

Memory chip supplier Nanya Technology Corp. soared 7.46 percent to end at NT$425.00, TSMC's ASIC design subsidiary Global Unichip Corp. rose 2.18 percent to close at NT$4,920.00, and smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. gained 2.01 percent to end at NT$4,560.00.

Also in the tech sector, Largan Precision Co., a supplier of smartphone camera lenses to Apple, surged 10 percent to close at a six-year high of NT$4,680.00 on the company's efforts to enter the co-packaged optics (CPO) business to tap the AI boom.

iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision industry Co. underperformed the Taiex, up only 0.56 percent to end at NT$269.00.

"The financial sector attracted rotational buying as many firms posted strong profits from investments in the high-flying stock market," Tang said.

In the financial sector, which rose 2.15 percent, Cathay Financial Holding Co. rose 5.29 percent to close at NT$109.50 and Fubon Financial Holding Co. rose 3.53 percent to end at NT$132.00.

KGI Financial Holding Co. added 3.12 percent to close at NT$29.70, and President Securities ended up 2.33 percent at NT$52.60.

As the market put tech and financial stocks under a spotlight, old economy stocks largely appeared mixed, Tang said. Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Corp. rose 3.70 percent to close at NT$26.90 and rival Far Eastern New Century Corp. gained 3.63 percent to end at NT$28.55.

Bucking the upturn, Formosa Plastics Corp. fell 1.06 percent to close at NT$46.76 and Nan Ya Plastics Corp. ended down 1.71 percent at NT$115.00.

"After possible wild fluctuations on the futures settlement date, the Taiex could continue an uptrend to challenge 46,552 points, a historical intraday high seen on June 3," Tang said.

According to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$40.80 billion of shares on the main board Tuesday.