Taiex ends up at high but turnover falls before holiday

Taipei, Sept. 23 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan extended momentum from a session, closing at a fresh high Wednesday but turnover shrank as some investors stayed on the sidelines amid caution ahead of the upcoming long Mid-Autumn Festival weekend, dealers said.

The Taiex, the Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark index, ended up 357.12 points, or 0.75 percent, at 48,157.29 after moving between 47,894,77 and 48,341.56. Turnover totaled NT$855.95 billion (US$27.01 billion), down from NT$1.068 trillion on Tuesday.

Movement on the local main board was dictated by the U.S. markets, where the tech-heavy Nasdaq index closed at a fresh high on the gains posted by AI-related stocks, Cathay Futures Consultant analyst Tsai Ming-han said.

"Strong global demand for AI applications further bolstered tech stocks, while nontech industries largely came under pressure," Tsai said, citing the latest export orders data released Tuesday that showed an over 70 percent year-on-year increase in August.

"But, some investors appeared reluctant to chase prices ahead of the upcoming long weekend amid fears that possible negative leads would arise overseas during the holiday, sending turnover lower," Tsai said.

Led by a 1.54 percent increase in its American depositary receipts overnight, contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which accounts for over 40 percent of total market value, rose 1.63 percent to close at NT$2,500.00, contributing about 320 points to the Taiex's rise.

After U.S.-based memory chip maker Micron Technology Inc. rose 5.00 percent Tuesday, Nanya Technology Corp. in Taiwan gained 3.62 percent to end at NT$515.00. Smartphone IC designer MediaTek closed up 0.10 percent at NT$5,185.00.

Also in the tech sector, iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. rose 1.19 percent to end at NT$256.00, but power management solution provider Delta Electronics Inc. closed unchanged at NT$1,900.00.

Buying rotated to printed circuit board producers, with Gold Circuit Electronics Ltd. soaring 10 percent, the maximum daily increase, to end at NT$1,140.00.

Tsai said the old economy sector appeared mixed. "But the cement industry outperformed, led by TCC Group Holdings Co., which announced to acquire cement assets in Ukraine," Tsai said. "The buying also came from bargain hunters as the stock was cheap enough."

TCC Group rose 4.48 percent to close at NT$25.65, boosting the cement index up 1.23 percent, while Asia Cement Corp. also ended up 1.41 percent at NT$35.95.

However, paper product suppliers Baolong International Co. fell 1.38 percent to close at NT$10.70, and YFY Inc. ended down 1.90 percent at NT$27.48.

The financial sector underperformed the broader market, down 0.78 percent, with Fubon Financial Holding Co. down 0.97 percent to close at NT$153.00, and Cathay Financial Holding Co. down 0.45 percent to end at NT$111.50. However, KGI Financial Holding Co. closed up 0.13 percent at NT$39.35.

"The Taiex faced stiff technical resistance ahead of 48,601.53, June 23's intraday high and consolidation could continue," Tsai said. "But a long uptrend remains unchanged on the AI boom."

According to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$37.31 billion of shares on the main board Wednesday.