AU Optronics leads the decliners on TAIEX

Stocks fell for the first day in four, paced by AU Optronics Corp (友達光電), after it reported sales in March dropped from a year earlier.

Exporters such as Quanta Computer Inc (廣達電腦) and Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦) fell ahead of a government report that may show shipments overseas slowed as customers stockpiled before the war with Iraq.

The TAIEX declined 23.38, or 0.5 percent, to 4,552.45 at the 1:30pm close, reversing an earlier gain of as much as 0.7 percent. Almost two stocks fell for every one that gained.

"We don't expect big gains in the second quarter and even after the war ends, everybody's focus will be back on the corporate and economic fundamentals," said Celine Chiang (江宜津), who manages the NT$500 million Chronicle 2001 Fund at Polaris International Securities Investment Trust Co (寶來投信). "Some individual companies may have received more orders than others or performed better than [others], but we haven't seen an overall boost." Almost three US companies have reduced first-quarter profit estimates for every one that's raised them, according to Thomson Financial.

Electronics companies' shares make up about 30 percent of Chiang's fund and she said she won't raise the proportion beyond 35 percent.

AU Optronics, the world's fourth-largest maker of flat-panel displays, fell NT$0.40, or 1.9 percent, to NT$20.70 after reporting sales in March fell 9.9 percent from a year ago to NT$6.4 billion.

Quanta Computer, fell NT$2, or 2.9 percent, to NT$67. Asustek Computer, the nation's largest maker of boards holding chips that run computers, fell NT$1.50, or 2 percent, to NT$73.

Today's value of trade was NT$61.5 billion (US$1.8 billion), almost 10 percent lower than the daily average in the past three months. MSCI Taiwan futures for April delivery in Singapore fell 1.4 percent to 195.00. The Taiwan Futures Index fell 0.6 percent to 4,547.

Silicon Integrated Systems Corp (SiS, 矽統科技), the world's third-largest designer of chipsets for personal computers, plunged NT$1.70, to NT$22.90 after rival Via Technologies Inc (威盛科技) settled all 11 patent suits pending with Intel Corp in five countries. Chipsets work with processors such as those designed by Intel to manage personal-computer functions such as memory and graphics. Via rose NT$2.50, or 6.9 percent, to NT$38.50.