TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's technology tycoon Terry Gou (郭台銘), founder of manufacturing giant Hon Hai Precision and recently ranked as Taiwan's second-wealthiest person by Forbes, suffered a staggering financial blow on Monday (April 7) as markets tumbled across the island nation. Hon Hai's shares crashed to their daily limit-down price of NT$138.5 (US$4.17), wiping NT$26.1 billion (US$786.1 million) from Gou's personal fortune in a single trading session.
According to filings with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE, 台灣證交所), Gou maintained a massive position of 1.742 billion shares in Hon Hai as of February 2025. The dramatic decline represents a stark reversal of fortune for the industrialist, whose Hon Hai holdings were valued at an impressive NT$408.5 billion (US$12.3 billion) when shares peaked at NT$234.5 (US$7.06) last July. Monday's limit-down trading price effectively erased months of market gains for the technology manufacturing conglomerate.
The market collapse similarly devastated the fortune of Barry Lam (林百里), founder and chairman of Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) and currently Taiwan's wealthiest individual according to Forbes. Lam, who holds 415,000 shares in his company, watched as Quanta's stock plunged to its limit-down price of NT$210 (US$6.33), reducing his personal wealth by an estimated NT$9.54 billion (US$287.3 million) in a single trading day.
The widespread collapse in Taiwan's markets came in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement last week of a new reciprocal tariff policy that rattled global investors. Taiwan's benchmark weighted index opened Monday with an unprecedented limit-down lock and eventually closed with a staggering 2,065-point loss, the steepest single-day decline in the exchange's history. The selloff was remarkably comprehensive, with 1,723 listed companies—including semiconductor titan TSMC, chip designer MediaTek, and Gou's Hon Hai — all hitting their maximum allowable daily losses.
