Equity investors in Taiwan earned about NT$1 million (US$35,224) on average in the past lunar year, boosted by a 30 percent rise in share prices, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
On Friday, the last trading session in the Year of the Rat, the benchmark index closed at 15,802.40, which is 3,683.69 points, or 30.4 percent, higher than in the last session in the previous lunar year, the Year of the Pig.
Market capitalization increased by NT$11.37 trillion, or 30.92 percent, from a year earlier to NT$48.16 trillion.
Photo: CNA
As of the end of last month, there were 11.28 million investors on the equity market, earning about NT$1.1 million on average in the 12-month period, the data showed.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, global financial markets remained resilient, as the US Federal Reserve and other major central banks pumped cash into economies, analysts said.
The spillover effects of loose monetary policies led to strong and sustained fund inflows into Taiwan, they said.
The TAIEX on Jan. 7 surpassed 15,000 points, peaked at 16,153.77 points on Jan. 21 and finished at 15,802.40 on Friday.
The gains were driven largely by contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which soared almost 90 percent in the Year of the Rat.
TSMC remained the global leader in high-end technology development, weathering headwinds from the pandemic, analysts said.
TSMC reallocated capacity after it lost orders from one of its major customers, Huawei Technologies Co (華為), due to US sanctions on the Chinese firm, they said.
In the Year of the Rat, TSMC’s market cap rose by NT$7.75 trillion to NT$16.38 trillion, as its shares soared by NT$299.00. Its shareholders earned NT$309,000 for every 1,000 shares, in addition to a cash dividend of NT$10 per share.
TSMC’s gains contributed 2,546 points to the TAIEX’s increase in the past lunar year.
The chipmaker remained the most profitable company in Taiwan, posting a record net profit of NT$517.89 billion, or earnings per share of NT$19.97.
TSMC has forecast a 15 percent sales increase this year, while the average growth in the pure-play wafer foundry industry is projected to be 10 percent.
Among the other companies that contributed significantly to the TAIEX’s gains, integrated circuit designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) posted NT$41.44 billion in net profit, an annual gain of 78.6 percent, driven by increased shipments of 5G chips.
In the Year of the Rat, MediaTek shares soared NT$531 from a year earlier to close at NT$950, with its market cap increasing by NT$844.29 billion. Its shareholders earned NT$541,500 for every 1,000 shares, in addition to a cash dividend of NT$10.5 per share.
Trading on the local equity market is to resume on Wednesday next week.
STRONG INTEREST: Analysts have pointed to optimism in TSMC’s growth prospects in the artificial intelligence era as the cause of the rising number of shareholders The number of people holding shares of chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) hit a new high last week despite a decline in its stock price, the Taiwan Depository and Clearing Corp (TDCC, 台灣集保) said. The number of TSMC shareholders rose to 2.46 million as of Friday, up 75,536 from a week earlier, TDCC data showed. The stock price fell 1.34 percent during the same week to close at NT$1,840 (US$57.55). The decline in TSMC’s share price resulted from volatility in global tech stocks, driven by rising international crude oil prices as the war against Iran continues. Dealers said
PRICE HIKES: The war in the Middle East would not significantly disrupt supply in the short term, but semiconductor companies are facing price surges for materials Taiwan’s semiconductor companies are not facing imminent supply disruptions of essential chemicals or raw materials due to the war in the Middle East, but surges in material costs loom large, industry association SEMI Taiwan said yesterday. The association’s comments came amid growing concerns that supplies of helium and other key raw materials used in semiconductor production could become a choke point after Qatar shut down its liquefied natural gas (LNG) production and helium output earlier this month due to the conflict. Qatar is the second-largest LNG supplier in the world and accounts for about 33 percent of global helium output. Helium is
Taiwan’s natural gas supply remains stable through the end of May, despite rising concerns about potential disruptions to Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies due to escalating conflicts in the Middle East, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. The ministry in a statement said that Taiwan has completed preparations for natural gas supply and shipping schedules through the end of May. It has also made plans to increase natural gas imports from regions outside the Middle East in June to ensure a stable supply, it added. Taiwan sources natural gas from 14 countries and is not solely dependent on the Middle East,
China is clamping down on fertilizer exports to protect its domestic market, industry sources said, putting an additional strain on global markets that were already grappling with shortages caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran. China is among the largest fertilizer exporters — shipping more than US$13 billion of it last year — and it has a history of controlling exports to keep prices low for farmers. Shipments through the war-blocked Strait of Hormuz account for about one-third of the sea-borne supply. This month, Beijing banned exports of nitrogen-potassium fertilizer blends and certain phosphate varieties, sources said. The ban, which has not
RSS