Taipei:Shares in Taiwan soared over 900 points, closing above 47,000 points, driven by a robust performance in U.S. tech stocks and renewed enthusiasm over AI development sparked by an IPO filing from AI safety and research firm Anthropic.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Taiex, Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark index, rose by 939.35 points, or 2.04 percent, reaching 47,035.58. The index fluctuated between 46,402.79 and 47,060.46 during trading. The turnover amounted to NT$722.14 billion (US$22.26 billion), which was lower than Tuesday's NT$1.03 trillion.

Local investors capitalized on a rally in the U.S., particularly with a 3.60 percent increase in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. This led to a positive response in Taiwan's tech stocks, especially after Anthropic's IPO filing revealed US$3.9 billion in operating cash flow from January to June with a 19 percent profit margin. The electronics index surged by 2.48 percent, bolstered by a 1.04 percent increase in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which alone contributed about 200 points to the Taiex's rise.

Other semiconductor stocks also performed well, with Nanya Technology Corp. rising 8.16 percent and Winbond Electronics Corp. climbing 5.52 percent. MediaTek Inc., a smartphone IC designer, saw its shares increase by 6.94 percent.

AI-related electronic component stocks also saw gains. Delta Electronics Inc. rose 2.65 percent, and Gold Circuit Electronics Ltd. hit the maximum daily increase of 10 percent. Additionally, old economy stocks in tech gadget raw materials saw strong buying, particularly Nan Ya Plastics Corp., which surged 7.23 percent.

However, not all sectors shared in the gains. The financial sector underperformed, falling 0.56 percent, with mixed results among its leading companies. Despite the Taiex's overall rise, some textile firms like Eclat Textile Co. and Far Eastern New Century Corp. experienced declines.

Today's gains pushed the Taiex above the technical resistance level of 46,398 points, although reduced turnover suggested some investors remained cautious, awaiting results from major AI-related firms like Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon. Foreign institutional investors purchased a net NT$15.92 billion of shares on the main board, According to Taiwan Stock Exchange.

Source Focus Taiwan