TAIPEI: Taiwan shares moved higher off an early high in the mid-Thursday session after the index briefly breached the 9,500-point mark, the nearest technical resistance, dealers said.
Buying focused on large-cap stocks such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. helping the broader market float above the previous close, the dealers said.
As of 10:55 a.m., the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange had risen 0.67 percent to 9,460.20 points, off an early high of 9,500.57, on turnover of NT$54.15 billion (US$1.75 billion).
“Investors here took cues from a move by foreign institutional investors to post a net of long-position contracts in the futures market yesterday, so buying was ignited soon after the local bourse opened, pushing the index to 9,500 points,” Hua Nan Securities analyst Kevin Su said.
Foreign institutional investors recorded a net of more than 800 long-position contracts in the futures market Wednesday, the first time for foreign investors to register a net of long positions since early May.
“Strong buying earlier this morning showed that investors were relieved to some extent in the wake of the net in long-position contracts after their sentiment had been dampened by constant selloffs by foreign investors in recent sessions,” Su said.
