Taipei: Shares in Taiwan closed lower Monday with contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) falling into consolidation mode amid lingering concerns over U.S. tariff policies, dealers said. The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), ended down 42.57 points, or 0.18 percent, at 23,340.56 after moving between 23,243.79 and 23,403.83. Turnover totaled NT$304.04 billion (US$10.33 billion).
According to Focus Taiwan, after rising 1.17 percent on Friday following TSMC's positive guidance for 2025, the Taiex pulled back Monday as investors took profits, using the Trump administration's talk of "reciprocal tariffs" as a pretext. However, bargain hunters emerged late in the session, picking up shares of the contract chipmaker and helping the broader market recover part of its earlier losses, dealers said.
Moore Securities Investment Consulting analyst Adam Lin noted that market sentiment remains affected by Trump's tariff policies, as Taiwan's negotiations with the United States have not yielded any conclusion. Despite TSMC's historic high net profit in the second quarter and an upgrade of sales growth for 2025 to 30 percent from 24-26 percent, caution over the tariff issue resurfaced. Lin suggested that without any resolution, the Taiex could move narrowly in the short term.
TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock in Taiwan, lost 0.43 percent to close at NT$1,150.00 after rebounding from a low of NT$1,135.00. The stock's rise from the day's low helped the Taiex recoup about 160 points Monday. In other movements, IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. fell 0.97 percent to end at NT$152.50, and TSMC's ASIC design subsidiary Global Unichip Corp. shed 3.63 percent to close at NT$1,195.00.
In contrast, smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. rose 1.06 percent to end at NT$1,425.00. Meanwhile, iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. lost 0.30 percent to close at NT$165.00, while Quanta Computer Inc., another AI server supplier, remained unchanged at NT$273.50. Lin commented that buying continued rotating, with select old economy stocks attracting attention.
Within the petrochemical sector, the index increased by 0.98 percent. Shares in Nan Ya Plastics Corp. rose 1.36 percent to close at NT$29.80, and Formosa Chemicals and Fibre Corp. gained 1.38 percent to end at NT$25.75. Teco Electric and Machinery Co. rose 1.26 percent to close at NT$48.40 following their announcement of winning two hyperscale data center engineering contracts in Malaysia. Additionally, Shihlin Electric and Engineering Corp. added 0.54 percent to end at NT$185.00.
Elsewhere in the old economy sector, China Steel Corp., the largest steel maker in Taiwan, rose 1.05 percent to close at NT$19.20, and Chung Hung Steel Corp. increased by 0.12 percent to NT$42.40. In the financial sector, which lost 0.73 percent, Fubon Financial Holding Co. dropped 0.72 percent to close at NT$83.10, and Cathay Financial Holding Co. dropped 0.48 percent to end at NT$62.80. Lin advised investors to closely monitor the ongoing earnings season at home and in the U.S., especially results from tech firms that could influence the markets.
According to the TWSE, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$4.13 billion worth of shares on the main board Monday.