Electronics Weak, Financials Hit Record High; Taiwan Stocks Fall 606 Points, Weekly Line Posts 3rd Consecutive Gain

(Central News Agency reporter Zhong Rongfeng, Taipei, 5th) The Taiwan stock market experienced a pullback and volatile trading on the 5th. It plunged as much as 1,467 points in early trading, but buying rotated into the financial, optical, and passive component sectors, lifting the index by over 1,200 points. After noon, large-cap stocks like TSMC weakened, and the market closed down 606.52 points, managing to hold above the 45,000-point level. The TAIEX gained 338 points for the week, marking a third consecutive weekly gain. The weighted index closed at 45,070.94 points, down 606.52 points, or 1.33%, falling below its 5-day moving average of 45,620 points but holding above the 45,000-point mark. Trading value was NT$1.229401 trillion. The electronics sub-index fell 1.52%. The financial sub-index turned positive during the session, hitting an all-time high of 2,942.12 points, and closed at a record high of 2,930.55 points, up 0.79%. The OTC index, representing small and mid-cap stocks, fell 2.05%. TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock, opened higher, reaching NT$2,405 before turning lower. It closed at NT$2,365, down NT$20, or 0.84%, with a market capitalization of NT$61.33 trillion. Among other electronics heavyweights, MediaTek closed at NT$4,300, down 2.93%; Delta Electronics closed at NT$2,300, down 5.15%; Hon Hai Precision Industry closed at NT$284.5, down 2.9%; ASE Technology Holding closed at NT$577, down 2.7%; United Microelectronics Corporation bucked the trend, closing up 5.2% at NT$131.5; and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation closed at NT$74.6, down 7.9%. In the memory sector, Nanya Technology closed at NT$360, down 8.86%. Winbond Electronics and Transcend Information hit the daily price limit, closing at NT$162 and NT$321.5, respectively. ADATA and Team Group fell over 7%, making the sector a relative underperformer. Most stocks priced over NT$1,000 pulled back. AP Memory managed to hold above the NT$1,000 level, maintaining the count of '51 stocks over NT$1,000'. Tai Shin Investment Consulting General Manager Huang Wenqing, in a telephone interview, analyzed that the conclusion of the COMPUTEX exhibition and the market's recent gains have led to a consolidation phase. He added that mixed signals in the memory market also influenced the day's trading. Huang pointed out that AI chips mostly use High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), and market demand remains strong. Long-term, the growth trend and demand for the AI industry are clear, but after the recent rally, the Taiwan stock market needs further positive catalysts to sustain momentum, suggesting a period of high-level consolidation in the short term. Tai Shin's Taiwan IC Design research team noted that future focus should be on the progress of US-Iran negotiations, as recurring variables could impact investor confidence. Additionally, high margin lending ratios at brokerages are a key observation point; without more buying, the Taiwan stock market could face another pullback.