Taiwan Stock Market Closes Slightly Down 6.61 Points, Holds 45,000 and 5-Day MA Amid Caution Ahead of TSMC Earnings Call

Taiwan's stock market on Wednesday (16) saw investor caution ahead of TSMC's (2330-TW) afternoon earnings call, resulting in a noticeable contraction in trading volume. Traditional industry and petrochemical stocks performed strongly, while IC substrate stocks became the weakest sector. The weighted index closed down 6.61 points at 45,624.98, holding both the 45,000 mark and the 5-day moving average. Total market value dropped sharply to NT$900.839 billion. Electronics stocks closed down 0.01%, with their share of total trading volume slipping to 76.85%.

TSMC closed at NT$2,470, up NT$30 or 1.23% on the day.

The market opened at 45,511.98 and briefly turned positive during the session, reaching a high of 45,855.02. However, selling pressure in the final hours pushed the index lower, closing down 6.61 points at 45,624.98, with trading value sharply reduced to NT$900.839 billion.

The New Taiwan dollar appreciated against the U.S. dollar, closing midday at NT$32.178 per USD, up 1.1 cents, with transaction volume at $642 million.

IC substrate stocks underperformed today, becoming a disaster zone within the electronics sector. Nanya Technology (8046-TW) closed at the daily limit down of NT$1,275. Unimicron (3037-TW) fell 5.77% to NT$882, and ChipMOS (3189-TW) dropped 8.88% to NT$770.

Regarding today's market trend, veteran securities analyst Huang Han-cheng pointed out that the shrinking trading volume mainly stems from foreign investors' conservative outlook on the market. Among electronics sub-sectors, passive components, IC substrates, power components, and CPO in optical communications have sequentially declined, creating heavy resistance at higher levels. Even as prices fall, there is weak buying support. These two factors have led to a volume-shrinking downtrend. The support level for the weighted index is currently seen at 43,500–43,700 points, while the 10-day and monthly moving averages form a significant resistance zone above.

Optical stocks strengthened today. Largan Precision closed up NT$220 (5.45%) at NT$4,260. Within the sector, Genesis Photonics (3406-TW) and Young Fast Optoelectronics (3504-TW) also ended higher.

In traditional industries, bicycle manufacturer and component maker Giant Manufacturing (5306-TW) rose 9.73% to close at NT$99.2. Giant (9921-TW) and Merida (9914-TW) both closed at the daily limit up.

Among large-cap stocks, Hon Hai (2317-TW) closed up NT$3.5 (1.46%) at NT$242.5. Quanta Computer (2383-TW) fell NT$13.5 (3.69%) to NT$352, and Wusab Electronics (2313-TW) dropped NT$12.5 (5.04%) to NT$235.5.