Taiwanese consumers became more cautious this month, with confidence in stock investing falling to a more than three-year low despite a continued rally in local equities, as many investors viewed the market as overheated, a survey released yesterday by National Central University showed.
The university’s Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development said its consumer confidence index edged down 0.39 points from a month earlier to 62.08
Of the index’s six sub-indices, only sentiment toward consumer prices improved, while confidence in household finances, Taiwan’s economy, employment opportunities, stock investment timing and purchases of durable goods all weakened, the survey showed.
Photo: CNA
The sharpest decline came in sentiment toward the timing to invest in stocks over the next six months, which fell 1.03 points to 22.06, the lowest level since February 2023.
Research center director Dachrahn Wu said the decline did not indicate that people had lost confidence in equities, but that many believed current valuations made the market unattractive for new positions.
“From an investment perspective, when asset prices become expensive, people don’t see it as a good entry point,” Wu said. “Many investors are waiting for a concrete market correction before re-entering.”
Wu attributed the slight improvement in price sentiment to the government’s decision to freeze electricity and fuel prices, as well as stable fruit and vegetable supplies.
Although some daily necessities and energy-related items have become more expensive due to the US-Israeli war on Iran, Taiwan’s consumer price index has remained below the central bank’s 2 percent alert threshold, while favorable weather conditions helped ease produce prices, he said.
The survey showed that sentiment toward buying real-estate deteriorated, falling to the lowest level since June 2020.
Wu said the decline reflected a shift of household funds into the stock market, as repeated rallies in the TAIEX attracted buyers away from property purchases.
Daily turnover on the local main board has frequently approached NT$1.5 trillion (US$47.74 billion), with some families redirecting down payments originally intended for housing purchases into equities, contributing to weaker housing transactions, he said.
Wu said that the market has shown signs of overheating, with day trading accounting for nearly 38 percent of turnover — indicating heightened speculation that could increase volatility and correction risks.
The survey was conducted by telephone from Monday to Thursday last week, covering 3,346 respondents aged 20 or older across Taiwan, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
Netherlands-based semiconductor equipment supplier ASML Holding NV yesterday said that it is planning to hire an additional 1,000 people in Taiwan this year in response to growing demand from clients. ASML had previously planned to recruit 600 people this year, but that the plan has been adjusted upward, ASML vice president and ASML Taiwan general manager Grace Wang (汪佳慧) told reporters. ASML has a workforce of more than 4,500 in Taiwan, accounting for about 10 percent of its global total, Wang said. This year’s recruitment campaign would focus on adding people in the customer support, manufacturing and supply chain domains to assist ASML
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
Nvidia Corp yesterday announced that CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) would attend an employee meeting in Taipei tomorrow to celebrate the launch of the company’s Taiwan headquarters project. Huang would attend a gathering at the site of Nvidia’s planned headquarters in Beitou Shilin Technology Park (北投士林科技園區), the company said in a statement. After arriving in Taiwan on Saturday last week, Huang told reporters that he plans to meet with Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), and would attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Nvidia’s Taiwan headquarters tomorrow. Nvidia has not yet applied
RSS