TAIPAI: Taiwan’s dollar climbed to a one-month top after international shareholders boosted holdings of local equities as Japan continued its record stimulus.
The Taiex index rose for a fourth day after foreign funds pumped $539 million into Taiwanese shares on Wednesday, the most in seven months, exchange data show. The yen rallied 0.7 percent Wednesday as the Bank of Japan said it will keep expanding its monetary base at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen ($677 billion). The currencies of Taiwan and Japan often move in tandem as their exporters compete in global markets.
“Foreign investors may be remitting their funds into Taiwan because net purchases of stocks have increased recently,” said Andrew Tsai, an economist at KGI Securities Co. in Taipei. There is some speculation that Japan won’t expand its stimulus further, he said.
Taiwan’s dollar gained 0.3 percent to NT$31.460 against its U.S. counterpart as of 11:59 a.m. local time, Taipei Forex Inc. prices show. It touched NT$31.364 earlier, the strongest level since Dec. 19. One-month non-deliverable forwards rose 0.1 percent to NT$31.453, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The yen slipped 0.2 percent against the greenback.
The island’s exporters may be repatriating overseas proceeds to prepare for the Lunar New Year holidays beginning Feb. 19, boosting demand for the local dollar, said Tarsicio Tong, a currency trader at Union Bank of Taiwan in Taipei.
