Taiwan Stocks Jump 1.52% to 1-Month High as Chipmakers Surge 10% Amid Oil

Taiwan stocks closed higher Monday, with the Taiwan Weighted index adding 1.52% to reach a new one-month high, led by gains in the Glass, Semiconductor and Electronics sectors. Topoint Technology (TW:8021) jumped 10.00% to 462.00, United Microelectronics (TW:2303) rose 10.00% to 143.00, and Holy Stone Enterprise (TW:3026) gained 9.99% to 771.00. LARGAN Precision (TW:3008) led decliners, falling 10.00% to 6,660.00, while broader losers outnumbered gainers 594 to 418, with 113 unchanged.

Chipmakers Lead Broad Rally

Semiconductor and electronics names powered Monday’s advance, extending a rally tied to surging global demand for chips linked to artificial intelligence infrastructure. United Microelectronics, one of the world’s largest contract chipmakers, hit its daily 10% limit-up alongside Topoint Technology and Holy Stone Enterprise, both of which also posted maximum single-day gains under Taiwan’s exchange rules. The advance pushed the benchmark index to its highest close in a month, even as declining stocks outnumbered advancers 594 to 418 on the broader exchange, with 113 issues unchanged — a split showing the rally concentrated in specific sectors rather than lifting the market evenly.

Source: investing.com

Largan Leads Session’s Decliners

Not every corner of the market shared in the gains. LARGAN Precision, a major supplier of camera lenses for smartphones, fell 10.00% to 6,660.00, its steepest single-day drop under exchange limits, as investors continued paring positions in optical component makers amid softer demand for automotive and consumer camera lenses. PELL BIO MED TECHNOLOGY dropped 9.93% to an all-time low of 67.10, and KS Terminals declined 9.92% to 59.00. The divergence between chip-related gainers and optics-related decliners points to:

• Continued profit-taking in previously high-flying substrate and optical component names
• Sustained investor demand for pure-play semiconductor exposure amid AI-driven chip orders

Oil Surge Weighs on Currencies

Commodity markets reflected the same energy pressures rattling global equities. WTI crude for October delivery rose 1.54% to $92.89 a barrel, while Brent crude for November delivery gained 1.59% to $97.81, both extending a weeks-long climb tied to the ongoing conflict between U.S. forces and Iran near the Strait of Hormuz. December gold futures slipped 0.81% to $4,440.14 a troy ounce. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar eased 0.12% against the Taiwan dollar to 31.60, while the TWD/CNY pair held roughly flat at 0.21. The U.S. Dollar Index Futures dipped 0.06% to 99.09.

Conclusion

Monday’s session captured a market being pulled by two distinct forces at once: an AI-driven chip rally strong enough to lift the benchmark to a one-month high, and an oil-driven commodity shock strong enough to push crude toward $98 a barrel while pressuring optics and currency markets simultaneously. With decliners still outnumbering advancers on the broader exchange despite the index’s 1.52% gain, Taiwan’s rally looks narrow rather than broad-based — a pattern likely to persist as long as semiconductor demand and Middle East-driven energy costs keep moving in opposite directions for different parts of the market.