Shares in Taiwan recorded their second-highest daily point gain in history yesterday amid the possible easing of trade tensions between the US and China, and after US President Donald Trump indicated that he would not dismiss US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
The TAIEX closed up 845.71 points, or 4.5 percent, at 19,639.14. Turnover on the main board totaled NT$269.098 billion (US$8.28 billion), Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
The point gain in the TAIEX was the second highest on record, trailing only a 1,608.27-point spike on April 10 after Trump suspended for 90 days most of the draconian “reciprocal” tariffs he announced on April 2.
Photo: CNA
Hong Kong, Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Wellington, Singapore, Mumbai, Manila, Jakarta and Bangkok also advanced, while Shanghai edged down.
“Today’s upturn was completely driven by news that encouraged investors to think trade friction between Washington and Beijing is easing,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投顧) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.
Trump had previously said he could fire Powell after the Fed paused cuts to short-term interest rates. However, the US president told reporters on Tuesday: “I have no intention of firing him.”
Investors were also cheered by comments from US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent at a closed-door event in Washington, where Bessent said he expected “there will be a de-escalation” in Trump’s trade war with China in the “very near future.”
Trump also acknowledged on Tuesday that the US levies of 145 percent on Chinese goods were at a “very high” level, and that this would “come down substantially.”
After a 2.39 percent rise in its American depositary receipts overnight, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) surged 6.99 percent to close at NT$873 in Taipei trading and that contributed about 460 points alone to the TAIEX’s gains.
“Despite the gains in the TAIEX, turnover stayed low, indicating many investors were reluctant to chase prices, fearing an unpredictable Trump will say something to dampen investor sentiment and hurt the markets again,” Huang said. “Also, how Trump handles tariffs on semiconductors remains a big issue in the market.”
Additional reporting by AFP
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