Shares in Taiwan closed higher yesterday, the last trading session of the year, as last-minute buying in conglomerate stocks lent support to the broader market, dealers said.
The TAIEX closed up 58.07 points, or 0.7 percent, at 8,338.06, after moving between 8,258.73 and 8,338.06. Turnover totaled NT$47.88 billion (US$1.45 billion) during the session.
Buying in Taiwan’s equity market yesterday focused on the financial sector, which has been a market laggard, and on semiconductor stocks, but the trading volume remained low, as many foreign investors were still away for the holiday season, dealers said.
“The last-minute buying lifted today’s trading volume by about NT$8 billion,” Concord Securities Co (康和證券) analyst Kerry Huang said. “Without that buying, turnover would have been even lower in the absence of many foreign institutional investors.”
Due to the thin turnover, the local market remained in consolidation mode.
“It was no surprise that the index failed to challenge 8,400 points today [yesterday],” Huang said.
On the foreign exchange market, the New Taiwan dollar lost NT$0.016 to close at NT$33.066 against the US currency on the back of continued intervention by the central bank to improve Taiwanese exporters’ competitive edge in the international market.
For all of last year, the NT dollar declined NT$1.348, or about 4.25 percent, against the US dollar, making it the third consecutive year in which the local dollar trended lower.
Meanwhile, regional stock markets were mixed in thin trading on New Year’s Eve after the latest decline in oil prices pulled Wall Street lower, with the Shanghai Composite Index retreating 0.9 percent to 3,539.18 points, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.15 percent to 21,914.4.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.5 percent to 5,295.9 and India’s SENSEX gained 0.1 percent to 25,980.85. Benchmarks in New Zealand and Thailand also advanced, while Singapore declined. Markets in Japan and South Korea were closed for the New Year holiday.
“This year has been a very volatile and difficult year as the markets were assaulted by volatility from different asset classes,” said Kelvin Tay (鄭汪清), regional chief investment officer at UBS wealth management business in Singapore. “The sharp sell-off in the commodities market badly affected the Asian currency markets, especially Southeast Asian currencies and equities.”
Mizuho Bank Ltd yesterday said lingering and familiar risks are not purged at the stroke of midnight.
The Japanese bank cited fluctuating oil prices and uncertainty over the impact of monetary policy changes in the US, Europe and Japan.
“Instead, the risk landscape is a continuum that warrants caution,” the bank said in a report.
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