The TAIEX yesterday closed higher for the second consecutive day after trading resumed on Monday following the nine-day Lunar New Year holiday, with the weighted index jumping above the 8,200-point mark as investors were encouraged by soaring Asian stock markets, dealers said.
The TAIEX gained 145.56 points, or 1.8 percent, to close at 8,212.07 on a turnover of NT$90.48 billion (US$2.7 billion).
The index opened at 8,090.91 points and fluctuated between 8,227.19 and 8,090.19 points during the trading session.
The increase was led by large-cap and technology stocks, as investors took cues from strong gains in Asian markets.
In the technology sector, Apple Inc concept stocks recorded the highest gains, with Largan Precision Co (大立光), which supplies lenses for smartphone cameras to Apple Inc, closing 7.5 percent higher at NT$2,570.
Catcher Technology Co (可成), a metal casing supplier for Apple, gained 7.97 percent to close at NT$250.5, while Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), which assembles iPhones and iPads for Apple, surged 2.54 percent to close at NT$76.6 and Pegatron Corp (和碩), an assembler of the iPhone 6s for Apple, rose 3.1 percent to close at NT$78.6.
Contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), the most heavily weighted stock in the local stock market, gained 2.07 percent to close at NT$148.
Caizischool Co Ltd vice president Kevin Lin (林成蔭) said that the stock market would likely continue its upward movement in the near future, depending on industry fundamentals and on whether the index would remain above the quarterly moving average line in the next few days, as well as whether foreign investors become net buyers of stocks.
Taiwan’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index began expanding again last month after six months of contraction, Lin said, adding that this could also provide momentum to the market.
Asian shares extended gains yesterday as a combination of stabilizing Chinese markets, rebounding oil prices and solid US consumption data prompted investors to look for bargains after last week’s rout.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 1.1 percent, with Chinese shares advancing 2.7 percent to three-week highs, helped by a surge in China’s bank lending to a record high.
“Before the start of the Lunar New Year, there were worries about Chinese shares and a possible further fall in the yuan. But since the resumption of trading on Monday, Chinese markets have been surprisingly steady,” Standard Chartered Bank executive director of financial markets Koichi Yoshikawa said.
Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.2 percent after a 7.2 percent climb on Monday, recovering a sizable part of its 11 percent slump last week — its biggest since 2008.
“It is partly a reaction after such big falls last week. Solid US data is also improving investor sentiment given that they are counting on US growth to lead the global economy,” Daiwa Securities chief global strategist Hirokazu Kabeya said.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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