Taiwanese shares buoyed by US tech rally and trade talks

Shares in Taiwan closed sharply higher yesterday, with buying sparked by a US tech rally at the end of last week, continued global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) technology and positive signals from trade talks over the weekend between US and Chinese officials.

The TAIEX ended up 538.09 points, or 1.14 percent, at 47,718.84, with leading AI chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) gaining 0.81 percent to close at NT$2,480.

Turnover on the local main board was NT$820.22 billion (US$25.83 billion), Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.

A smartphone screen shows listed companies’ stock price data at a brokerage firm in Taipei yesterday.

Photo: CNA

“Although the US Federal Reserve hinted at another rate hike by the end of this year after last week’s 25 basis point increase, major cloud service providers continued to pump funds into AI infrastructure, prompting investors to pick up tech stocks at home and abroad,” Concord Securities Co (康和證券) analyst Kerry Huang (黃志祺) said. “In Taipei, strong buying continued to benefit semiconductor stocks, led by TSMC.”

“Chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) also attracted interest as investors appeared upbeat about its efforts in application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) development to tap the AI era,” he added.

MediaTek soared 6.37 percent to end at NT$5,010. AIchip Technologies Ltd (世芯), another ASIC designer, rose 3.53 percent to close at NT$3,665.

The financial sector continued an uptrend on hopes that the Fed’s rate hike would boost interest income, with Fubon Financial Holding Co rising 2.66 percent to close at NT$154.50 and Cathay Financial Holding Co up 2.26 percent at NT$113.0.

International crude oil prices fell more than 2 percent early yesterday as vessel traffic and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz picked up, although the Strait has remained largely closed and uncertainty persisted over US-Iran tensions.

Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.5 percent to US$101.31 per barrel, while benchmark US crude lost 2.6 percent to US$93.57 per barrel.

“A fall in crude oil prices also improved market sentiment today, so investors should keep a close eye on how military conflicts in the Middle East will evolve,” Huang said. “In addition, the summit between Washington and Beijing later this week is worth watching.”

On Sunday, US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent told reporters following talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) in New York that the US had “a very successful engagement” with the Chinese side, ahead of the expected meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) later this week in Washington which could cover trade, AI and geopolitics.