The TAIEX yesterday plunged 3.53 percent, or 830.7 points, to close at 22,694.71, as major tech companies took a hard hit from Washington’s tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico and China, where Taiwanese electronics suppliers have set up factories to take advantage of favorable tax terms.
The recent emergence of a Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) model DeepSeek (深度求索) contributed to the panic sell-off that scourged US tech shares, especially Nvidia Corp, during the Lunar New Year holiday.
“The TAIEX’s poor showing had much to do with Wall Street’s recent performance,” Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) chairman Sherman Lin (林修銘) said at a public function in Taipei.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
While DeepSeek raised new uncertainties, US tech giants Meta Platforms Inc and Google’s parent, Alphabet Inc, have reaffirmed their commitment to AI investments, a trend that should continue to benefit local firms in the supply chain, Lin said.
DeepSeek has sparked discussions on AI training methodologies rather than reversing AI development and applications, he said.
Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest advanced-chip contract maker, shed 5.73 percent to NT$1,070, while AI server maker Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) fell by the daily limit to NT$243, TWSE data showed.
The revenue of Taiwan’s listed firms totaled NT$43 trillion (US$1.3 trillion) last year.
Among this, exports from Taiwan to the US via China accounted for only 5 percent, and exports destined to the US via Canada and Mexico made up a tiny 1 percent, Lin said, seeking to calm market jitters.
Turnover was NT$492.831 billion, with foreign institutional players selling a net NT$74.4 billion, the fourth-largest on record, and proprietary traders cutting stakes by a net NT$20.4 billion of shares, TWSE statistics showed.
Trump has also threatened to slap tariffs on semiconductor imports to encourage chipmakers to set up manufacturing in the US.
Lin said that many Taiwanese firms are agile and resilient, with TSMC already setting up fabs in the US, Japan and Germany.
Other tech companies with operations in Mexico would start to shift production to the US, Lin said.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended the day down 2.66 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.79 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index finished flat after reopening from the Lunar New Year holiday. Mainland Chinese markets resume trading tomorrow.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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