No decision has been made yet on whether the National Stabilization Fund (NSF) would step in to support Taiwan’s stock market, after the TAIEX plummeted by almost 10 percent yesterday, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said today.
The TAIEX suffered the highest single-day percentage loss on record as investors scrambled following US President Donald Trump’s announcement of 32-percent tariffs on Taiwanese imports.
The stock market reopened yesterday for the first time since last Wednesday's White House announcement, following a four-day holiday weekend.
Photo: CNA
Cho said he hopes Taiwan would withstand another difficult day today, as it retains strong economic fundamentals and a robust economic system.
The decision to have the NSF intervene would take time and take into consideration a variety of factors and expert opinions as it is not decided only by the government, he said.
The government would, however, act to protect national resources and exercise oversight, he added.
Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, slapped on countries worldwide, have triggered sharp declines in stock markets around the world.
Yesterday, TAIEX dropped by a record 2,065.87 points, or 9.7 percent.
The NSF then released a statement that it would “not rule out” convening a temporary response committee.
This committee would assess domestic and international political and economic developments and discuss responsive measures to maintain investor confidence and market stability, the statement said.
Although yesterday’s stock market drop was significant, the government was adequately prepared, Cho said.
The Executive Yuan, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) and the Central Bank of the Republic of China (CBC) have conducted extensive analyses of various scenarios, he said.
Cho also thanked the FSC and the Taiwan Stock Exchange for announcing three temporary response measures on Sunday to help maintain stock market stability.
Public response has indicated that the measures were helpful and deterred short selling, he added.
The FSC and CBC also implemented additional regulatory planning for 936 individual stocks, he said.
Cho said that with the US stock market showing signs of recovery yesterday, he hopes that Taiwan’s economy would be able to endure another testing day.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
Taiwan next year plans to launch its first nationwide census on elderly people living independently to identify the estimated 700,000 seniors to strengthen community-based healthcare and long-term care services, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) said yesterday. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said on the sidelines of a healthcare seminar that the nation’s rapidly aging population and declining birthrate have made the issue of elderly people living alone increasingly pressing. The survey, to be jointly conducted by the MOHW and the Ministry of the Interior, aims to establish baseline data and better allocate care resources, he
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