Shares in Taiwan closed up 75.52 points, or 0.71 percent, yesterday as the TAIEX ended the year at 10,642.86, on turnover of NT$108.906 billion (US$3.65 billion) on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE).
It was the first time that the TAIEX finished above the 10,000-point mark on its closing day of the year. It had remained above the level for 156 days — since May 23 — translating into average earnings of NT$1.31 million per investor, the exchange said.
For the whole of this year, the benchmark index was up by 1,389.36 points, or 15 percent, the most since 2009, it said.
Market analysts attributed the market gains to papermaking shares, which rose 61 percent for the whole of this year, and to shares in optoelectronics and integrated circuit companies, which are mainly local suppliers to Apple Inc.
Macronix International Co (旺宏電子), a leading integrated device manufacturer in the non-volatile memory market, increased a substantial 854 percent for the year, thanks to strong demand for NOR flash products.
The TAIEX surged to 10,659.98 at one point during trading after opening at the day’s low of 10,590.95 points.
Shares of all eight major stock categories rallied. Petrochemical stocks posted the largest increase of 1.32 percent, ahead of textile shares at 0.92 percent, electronics at 0.86 percent and construction stocks at 0.85 percent.
Gainers outnumbered losers 580 to 223, with 107 stocks remaining unchanged.
A rebound of Apple shares on Wall Street overnight boosted the shares of the three major Taiwan-based suppliers to Apple.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), the world’s largest contract electronics maker and an assembler of iPhones and iPads, gained 0.95 percent to end at NT$95.2. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), the world’s leading chip foundry and the most heavily weighted stock on the market, added 1.55 percent to close at NT$229.5.
Largan Precision Co (大立光), a smartphone camera lens supplier to Apple, which peaked at NT$6,075 in August, fell 0.5 percent to finish at NT$4,020.
Dealers said the local stock market is expected to continue rising in the short term on an appreciating New Taiwan dollar, boosted by strong foreign institutional buying of Taiwanese shares.
Foreign institutional players yesterday increased their holdings in local shares by a net NT$6.56 billion, while domestic proprietary traders raised net stakes by NT$229.8 million and domestic investment trust companies by NT$715.34 million, TWSE statistics showed.
The NT dollar yesterday retreated NT$0.008 to close at NT$29.848 against the US dollar in Taipei trading, according to central bank data.
Turnover amounted to US$1.07 billion at Taipei Forex Inc, compared with US$873 million a day earlier.
For the whole of this year, the NT dollar strengthened by NT$2.431, or 8.14 percent, against the greenback, according to prices from Taipei Forex Inc.
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