Taiwanese shares closed lower, with turnover expanding to top NT$100 billion (US$3.22 billion) yesterday, the first trading session in the Year of the Rooster after a six-day Lunar New Year break, as investors took profits amid concern over US trade policies.
Market sentiment remained cautious as investors wait for corporate sales reports for last month amid worries that a slow season could compromise the performance of many semiconductor firms.
The TAIEX closed down 18.98 points, or 0.2 percent, at 9,428.97 on turnover of NT$132.77 billion.
Photo: David Chang, EPA
The market opened up 0.59 percent to pass the 9,500-point mark and continued to move higher as more funds flowed into the country, dealers said.
However, the index reversed down as traders started to sell non-high tech stocks, especially financial shares, they said.
Smartphone camera lens supplier Largan Precision Co (大立光) bucked the trend by hitting a record high, lending support to the electronics sector and preventing the broader market from falling further, dealers said.
“There was a strong technical resistance after the index breached 9,500 points. It was understandable that many investors simply seized on earlier gains and pocketed their profits amid fears of a pullback after the index hit that level,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投信) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.
In addition, investors remain concerned over US President Donald Trump’s protectionist trade policies and were reluctant to hold on to their shares, Huang said.
“Since Trump signed the executive order banning travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries, fears have risen that the US president will introduce more measures to reflect his protectionist ideology, which could hurt global trade and export-oriented countries like Taiwan,” Huang said.
Largan closed up 2.25 percent at NT$4,550, off an early high of NT$4,580, with 1.11 million shares changing hands.
Investors were cheered by its client Apple Inc’s earnings, with its three-month earnings per share reaching US$3.36, beating consensus estimates of US$3.22.
However, the performance of other Apple supply-chain firms was mixed, with contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) falling 0.54 percent to NT$184.50, and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) ending up 0.48 percent at NT$84.10.
In the financial sector, Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) shed 1.26 percent to end at NT$46.90 and Fubon Financial Holding Co (富邦金控) lost 0.99 percent to close at NT$50.10 on profit-taking.
Textile manufacturer Eclat Textile Co (儒鴻) fell by the 10 percent daily limit to NT$292.50, affected by the lower-than-expected sales of its major brand customer Under Armour Inc for last quarter.
Other Taiwanese garment makers also saw their shares drop significantly, as investors were pessimistic about the business outlook of their major customers.
Makalot Industrial Co (聚陽), one of the nation’s leading garment makers, declined 3.02 percent to NT$112.50 and De Licacy Industrial Co Ltd (得力), which manufactures woven products for global customers, dropped 3.13 percent to NT$24.80.
“Despite the moderate index decline at the end of the session, turnover surged to more than NT$100 billion, indicating that many investors scrambled to unload their holdings today. I suspect that they were downbeat about Trump’s future trade policies,” Huang said. “The expanded trading volume in a down market has made the local main board technically weaker.”
Additional reporting by Kuo Chia-erh
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