Shares closed slightly lower yesterday, snapping a five-session winning streak as investors pocketed gains, analysts said.
The TAIEX closed down 15.68 points, or 0.3 percent, at 5797.71.
Decliners outnumbered advancers 419 to 265 with 196 stocks unchanged. Turnover fell to NT$82.23 billion (US$2.4 billion) from NT$118.84 billion (US$3.4 billion) on Thursday.
On the foreign exchange market, the New Taiwan dollar rose NT$0.010 to close at NT$34.065 against the US dollar, with a turnover of US$477 million.
"The local bourse was weighed down by profit-taking on its recent steep rise," said Jose Lee, an analyst at First Taisec Securities (一銀證券).
Lee said turnover was still healthy, indicating selling pressure wasn't intense.
Solomon Chang, QFII deputy manager at Jih Sun Securities (
Taiwan Semiconductor Manu-facturing Co (台積電), the world's No. 1 made-to-order chipmaker, shed 1.2 percent to NT$48. Its smaller peer United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) slipped 0.4 percent to NT$23.80.
AU Optronics Corp (
Michael On, president of Beyond Asset Management Co Ltd, said the market may consolidate around current levels ahead of further results.
"Investors are awaiting the last batch of corporate first-half earnings reports, while the scheduled raise of Taiwan's weighting by Morgan Stanley Capital International [by the end of November] could be the driving force," he said.
Meanwhile, financial authorities are planning to waive the 7 percent limit on daily stock price movements for initial public offerings for the first five days they trade, the Financial Supervisory Commission said yesterday on its Web site.
The Cabinet-level commission made the decision as part of the proposed package to improve the existing underwriting system for new stock offering, it said. The new rules will come into effect on Jan. 1 next year.
Companies, especially investment banks, who agree to underwrite an issue of new securities currently have to buy all the public shares at a set price and resell them to the general public, hopefully at a profit.
Under the new rules, a company seeking to list must sell new shares, not existing stock. But to encourage underwriters to become more responsible and professional for stock offering, the new rules also encourage underwriters to introduce the system of "greenshoe options" -- that is, allowing them to increase the number of shares issued if demand for the offering is strong, the commission said.
The new underwriting system is just the first step in the reform plan the commission is undertaking, the commission said. Details of the new rules will be completed over the next two months, it added.
Additional reporting by Staff Wirter
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