TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's benchmark stock index plunged 345.5 points Friday (Oct. 17), closing at 27,302.37 in a broad market selloff that erased 1.25% of value. Trading volume contracted sharply to NT$532.944 billion (around US$17.4 billion), signaling widespread investor caution amid heightened market volatility. The decline reflected broader concerns affecting Taiwan's technology-heavy equity markets.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC, 台積電), the world's largest contract chipmaker, tumbled NT$35 (around US$1.14) to NT$1,450 (around US$47.3) despite heavy late trading activity. The semiconductor giant's 2.36% decline contrasted sharply with Foxconn (鴻海), which gained 1.57% to NT$226.5 (around US$7.4) on robust volume. TSMC's weakness underscored broader technology sector pressures affecting Taiwan's market-leading companies.
Artificial intelligence-focused stocks led the decline, with Wistron (緯創) falling 2.15% to NT$136.5 (around US$4.4) as the electronics sector index dropped 1.6%. The semiconductor index declined 1.91% while financial stocks retreated 0.39%, reflecting broad-based selling pressure across major sectors. Small and mid-cap stocks, tracked by the over-the-counter index, fell 0.85% in the widespread market retreat.
Memory chipmaker Nanya Technology (南亞科) bucked the trend, surging to its daily limit at NT$104 (around US$3.4) on heavy volume exceeding 260,000 transactions. Winbond (華邦電) declined marginally to NT$43.95 (around US$1.4), while Delta Electronics (台達電) fell below the psychologically important NT$1,000 level. Delta closed at NT$999 (around US$32.6), marking a 2.54% decline that highlighted the session's broad selling pressure.
