The nation’s net foreign fund inflows totaled US$1.75 billion last month and hit US$8.12 billion in the first quarter, driven mainly by the local stock market recovery and the US Federal Reserve’s dovish stance.
The nation posted net outflows of US$4.71 billion in October last year amid a global market rout and US$10.33 billion for the whole of last year, Financial Supervisory Commission data showed.
After the US Federal Reserve in January said that it would be patient on interest rate increases and kept its policy rates unchanged last month, foreign investors’ expectations of a stronger US dollar were reduced and they began looking for other investment targets, the commission said.
The benchmark TAIEX has recovered this year and had gained 9.39 percent as of the end of last month, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
The jump in local equities drove more foreign funds to invest in the nation’s listed firms, which offer solid fundamentals and good dividend yields, the commission said.
Foreign institutional investors, who sold a net NT$354.25 billion (US$11.5 billion) of shares on the main board last year, bought a net NT$37 billion of local shares in January, commission data showed.
That trend continued and they bought a net NT$103.32 billion of shares on the main board and a net NT$15.62 billion of shares on the over-the-counter market last month, the data showed.
Accumulated net foreign fund inflows rose to US$205.64 billion as of last month, the data showed.
“Although companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange posted lower profits last year, foreign funds will continue to flow into Taiwan this year, as many listed companies are upbeat on profit growth,” the commission said.
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