Taiwan shares plunge by over 2% before U.S. inflation data, TSMC meeting
Shares in Taiwan came under heavy pressure, falling by 270 points to reach the local market's lowest point in two years Thursday, as investors cut their holdings ahead of the release of the U.S. September consumer price index (CPI) later in the day amid lingering fears over a hawkish Federal Reserve, dealers said.
Market sentiment also remained cautious about the tech sector ahead of an investor conference of the world's largest contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) that opened after the market close, they said.
The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), ended down by 270.51 points, or 2.07 percent, at 12,810.73 after moving between 12,809.43 and 13,111.39. Turnover totaled NT$208.1 billion (US$6.5 billion).
Thursday's close was the lowest level since Nov. 3, 2020, when the Taiex ended at 12,736.01.
13,000-point level, U.S. data
The market opened up by 0.21 percent and rose slightly to reach the day's high in the early morning session on a mild technical rebound, but selling soon followed and escalated across the board in the afternoon session to push the Taiex below the 13,000-point mark, dealers said.
The 13,000-point level seemed to be the bottom line for government-led funds on Wednesday as they jumped into the trading floor to vault the main board back up to that level during that session, but Thursday's selling amid concerns over rate increases plunged the index below that level, dealers added.
"The market remained bothered by the rate hike cycle in the U.S., in particular as Washington will release its CPI numbers later in the day," Mega International Investment Services Corp. analyst Alex Huang said. Read More…
