The TAIEX yesterday moved sharply higher by more than 2 percent to close above 16,600 points, with investors encouraged by strong gains on US markets at the end of last week, dealers said.
The bellwether electronics sector continued its momentum from a session earlier amid eased concerns over inflation in the US following the latest favorable core personal consumption expenditure data, while the financial sector lent more support to the broader market on a strong technical comeback, they said.
The TAIEX closed up 344.40 points, or 2.12 percent, at the day’s high of 16,610.62, the first time the index has closed above 16,600 points since May 5, when it closed at 16,696.12.
Photo: Kelson Wang, Taipei Times
Turnover totaled NT$256.035 billion (US$8.79 billion), with foreign institutional investors buying a net NT$27.58 billion of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
“Thanks to a strong showing on US markets on Friday, investors here simply seized on positive leads to hunt for bargains in the electronics sector, which had been hit hard by fears over a hawkish US Federal Reserve,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投顧) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.
The electronics sector rose 2.55 percent and the semiconductor sub-index soared 3.08 percent, while the financial sector rose 2.05 percent, the textile sector advanced 1.75 percent and the food sector moved up 1.36 percent.
“Today’s solid gains are paving a path for a higher TAIEX, as the New Taiwan dollar trended higher amid eased fears over an aggressive Fed, but I expect unless turnover expands to NT$300 billion or higher, it will not be easy for the main board to jump over high technical hurdles ahead of 16,800 points,” Huang said.
The NT dollar yesterday rose NT$0.206 to close at NT$29.144 against the US dollar in Taipei trading.
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