Taiwan shares edge higher

Taipei--Shares in Taiwan remained in consolidation mode and gained little ground on Wednesday as cautious investors were concerned over the impact of a possible interest rate hike in the United States later this month, dealers said.

The weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange closed up 15.38 points, or 0.16 percent, at 9,753.45, after moving between 9,773.49 and 9,712.5, on turnover of NT$79.668 billion (US$2.5 billion).

Following a lackluster performance on Wall Street, the market dipped before noon but recovered in the final 90 minutes of trading, led by large-cap electronics and financial stocks, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Co. (TSMC, ???), the most heavily weighted stock on the local market.

TSMC rose 0.81 percent to end at NT$187.00, helping the broader market finish in positive territory for the third straight session despite trading within a narrow range.

Old-economy sector stocks generally performed poorly on Wednesday, with the sub-indexes for the cement, food, plastics and chemical, paper and pulp, and construction sectors all closing lower.

Taiwan's market will likely remain in correction mode in the short term as investors take a more cautious approach on expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will increase interest rates at a policymaking meeting on March 14 and 15, analysts said.

The main index in Taiwan has a good chance to test the 9,800-point mark in the near future if daily turnover expands to NT$100 billion, and could even hit the 10,000-point level if the New Taiwan dollar continues to appreciate in value against the U.S. dollar, analysts said.

They suggested that the market was unlikely to fall below the nearest technical resistance at 9,700 points in the short term.

Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$1.25 billion in shares in Taiwan Wednesday.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel