The New Taiwan dollar yesterday slumped to its lowest level in 17 months against the greenback on sustained demand for the US currency and foreign capital outflows, traders said.
The NT dollar fell 0.92 percent, or NT$0.306, to close at NT$33.296 to the US dollar, its weakest since May 23 last year, foreign exchange data showed.
Turnover was US$1.613 billion on the Taipei Forex Inc.
Including US$550 million turnover on the Cosmos Foreign Exchange, total transactions reached US$2.163 billion, data from the two foreign exchanges showed.
The local currency opened at NT$32.99 and dropped as much as 1.3 percent, or NT$0.377, to NT$33.408 near midday, prompting the central bank to intervene and reverse the weakening slightly, traders said.
The central bank reiterated in a statement the NT dollar remained stable unlike the South Korean won, which has plunged 33.6 percent this year. The NT dollar has only weakened 2.6 percent.
A dealer at Ta Chong Bank (大眾銀行) attributed the greenback’s strong performance to foreign funds’ withdrawal from emerging markets around the world amid global financial tumult.“In times of international economic downturn, many investors seek recourse with US dollar and government bonds to hedge risks,” the trader said by telephone, requesting anonymity.
While expecting the NT dollar to weaken, the trader said he was surprised at the pace of the fall.
The trader speculated the NT dollar would continue the downward trend as long as foreign investors keep pulling out of the local financial markets. Together, they sold a net NT$428 million of local shares yesterday, helping drag the TAIEX down 132.08 points, or 2.71 percent, to 4,730.51.
The trader forecast the NT dollar would trade at NT$34 against the greenback next month and depreciate to NT$34.25 before its gradual recovery in late January.
A dealer at Union Bank of Taiwan (聯邦銀行) agreed in part. The trader, who also asked not to be named, said the NT dollar would remain weak in the next two or three months with sporadic rebounds.
“The local currency is likely to drop to NT$33.3 per US dollar unless the won falls below the 1,500 level,” he said. “The two currencies are closely tied in terms of export competition.”
The trader said the central bank would not let the NT dollar fall too sharply within a short period of time.
China has claimed a breakthrough in developing homegrown chipmaking equipment, an important step in overcoming US sanctions designed to thwart Beijing’s semiconductor goals. State-linked organizations are advised to use a new laser-based immersion lithography machine with a resolution of 65 nanometers or better, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an announcement this month. Although the note does not specify the supplier, the spec marks a significant step up from the previous most advanced indigenous equipment — developed by Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group Co (SMEE, 上海微電子) — which stood at about 90 nanometers. MIIT’s claimed advances last
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has appointed Rose Castanares, executive vice president of TSMC Arizona, as president of the subsidiary, which is responsible for carrying out massive investments by the Taiwanese tech giant in the US state, the company said in a statement yesterday. Castanares will succeed Brian Harrison as president of the Arizona subsidiary on Oct. 1 after the incumbent president steps down from the position with a transfer to the Arizona CEO office to serve as an advisor to TSMC Arizona’s chairman, the statement said. According to TSMC, Harrison is scheduled to retire on Dec. 31. Castanares joined TSMC in
EUROPE ON HOLD: Among a flurry of announcements, Intel said it would postpone new factories in Germany and Poland, but remains committed to its US expansion Intel Corp chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger has landed Amazon.com Inc’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) as a customer for the company’s manufacturing business, potentially bringing work to new plants under construction in the US and boosting his efforts to turn around the embattled chipmaker. Intel and AWS are to coinvest in a custom semiconductor for artificial intelligence computing — what is known as a fabric chip — in a “multiyear, multibillion-dollar framework,” Intel said in a statement on Monday. The work would rely on Intel’s 18A process, an advanced chipmaking technology. Intel shares rose more than 8 percent in late trading after the
FACTORY SHIFT: While Taiwan produces most of the world’s AI servers, firms are under pressure to move manufacturing amid geopolitical tensions Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) started building artificial intelligence (AI) servers in India’s south, the latest boon for the rapidly growing country’s push to become a high-tech powerhouse. The company yesterday said it has started making the large, powerful computers in Pondicherry, southeastern India, moving beyond products such as laptops and smartphones. The Chinese company would also build out its facilities in the Bangalore region, including a research lab with a focus on AI. Lenovo’s plans mark another win for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who tries to attract more technology investment into the country. While India’s tense relationship with China has suffered setbacks