Taiwan stocks swing wildly, close down 221 points amid tech sector volatility

Taiwan's stock market endured a turbulent trading session, swinging dramatically before ultimately closing lower. The main index experienced a wide fluctuation of 1117 points throughout the day.

The session began with optimism, as the market opened up 121.88 points, reaching 42793.15. This initial rise was fueled by a rebound in major electronics stocks, including TSMC, Hon Hai, MediaTek, and Wistron. The gains extended to the financial and traditional industrial sectors, pushing the index up by 413 points to 43084.

However, the momentum quickly reversed. Several key stocks, such as Yageo and UMC, hit their lower limits. The electronics sector, particularly passive components, semiconductor ABF substrates, memory, silicon wafers, and IC design companies, faced heavy selling pressure. This downturn dragged down the financial and traditional industrial sectors as well, with only a few sectors like tourism and oil and gas showing gains. The index plummeted over 700 points, falling below the 42,000 mark to a low of 41967.

Despite the sharp decline, a late rally saw the index recover some ground, supported by electronics stocks like TSMC, Wistron, and Gigabyte, along with traditional sectors such as machinery and cement. However, persistent selling pressure in popular electronics stocks weighed on the market. The index finished the day down 221.57 points at 42449.7, with a total trading volume of NT$983.8 billion.