The number of “big accounts,” who invest and trade local stocks heavily, last quarter increased 41 percent to 2,369 from a quarter earlier, encouraged by the bull market, Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) data showed yesterday.
The number of “big accounts,” which set an all-time high, is seen as an important indicator of investor confidence in the local markets.
A “big account” is defined as an individual investor who trades at least NT$500 million (US$17.25 million) of shares on the exchange in a single quarter.
Also reaching records were the number of mid-sized investors — those trading NT$100 million to NT$500 million in a single quarter — who totaled 20,534, up 34 percent quarter-on-quarter, and retail investors — those trading less than NT$100 million — who totaled 3.23 million, up 15 percent, the data showed.
The TAIEX continued its uptrend to 12,976 points on Sept. 16, after surpassing 12,000 points in early July. The index then dropped to 12,515 points at the end of last month, dashing investors’ hopes that it would surpass 13,000 points.
The increase in “big accounts” could be attributed to more mid-sized investors focusing on day trading to take advantage of market volatility, TWSE trading division director Ben Chen (陳正斌) told the Taipei Times by telephone.
As day traders buy and sell the same stocks within the same day, they register more transactions, Chen said, adding that the new big players are likely those who trade frequently enough to hit NT$500 million in day trading transactions.
Day trading transactions in the third quarter made up 33.87 percent of all transactions on the TWSE, up from 29.36 percent in the second quarter, while the number of day trading accounts last quarter grew to 80,930, up 17.5 percent quarterly, the data showed.
“As the TAIEX was trading at a comparatively high level and investors had difficulty forecasting when the benchmark would surpass 13,000 points, some investors preferred to avoid the risks associated with short-term and even day trading,” Chen said.
The increase in retail investors could be attributed to more of them choosing to manage wealth by investing in equities, rather than saving their money in banks, given the low interest-rate environment, he said.
The number of transactions by investors who make regular investments in the stock market — dollar-cost averaging investing — totaled NT$1.75 billion last month, up from NT$1.31 billion in June, the data showed.
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