Rising oil prices depress demand for airline shares

Shares ended slightly lower yesterday as the latest increase in oil prices damped demand for stocks.

The local bourse also tracked weaker regional stocks and Wall Street's decline Friday.

The TAIEX closed down 8.82 points, or about 0.2 percent, at 6,019.93. Decliners outnumbered advancers 501 to 368 with 139 unchanged.

Oil prices

Rising oil prices sparked investor concerns over increasing inflationary pressure, which may force central banks around the world to hike interest rates more aggressively than previously thought, analysts said.

Airline shares fell yesterday on increasing fuel costs.

Eva falls

China Airlines (華航) dropped 1.5 percent to NT$16.95. Eva Airways Corp (長榮) fell 1.4 percent to NT$14.35.

Technology stocks were weak, led by selling in foundry stocks. Analysts said the 1.4 percent fall in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index last Friday pressured local chipmakers.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) slid 0.8 percent to NT$52.20. United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) fell 0.8 percent to NT$19.

Chang Hwa down

Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰化銀行) fell 3.1 percent to NT$17.45 after it denied a Chinese-language newspaper report that Shinsei Bank Ltd of Japan is close to buying a stake in its operations. Overseas investors have been invited to buy a 22 percent stake in the bank as part of government efforts to improve the state-controlled lender's competitiveness and to modernize its operations.

SinoPac Holdings Co (建華金控), a Taipei-based lender, rose 3.8 percent to NT$18 after Taishin Financial Holdings Co (台新金控), the nation's second-largest credit-card issuer, offered to pay SinoPac NT$23.50 for each of its shares, a 35 percent premium over SinoPac's closing price of NT$17.35 on April 1.