Taiwan: Stocks rise from 15-yr highs, TW$ jumps again

[TAIPEI] Taiwan stocks rose 0.2 per cent and the local currency surged on Tuesday as investor sentiment continued to be bullish after stocks hit 15-year highs in the previous session, with TSMC and other heavyweights leading the gainers.

A few minutes into trading, the main TAIEX index had climbed to 10,014.28 points, extending a 0.6 per cent gain in the previous session. But it soon fell into a narrow range, down 0.12 per cent at 0120 GMT.

On Monday, the index touched the 10,000-point milestone, a level not seen since 2000.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the world's top contract chip maker and Taiwan's most heavily-weighted stock, added 0.7 per cent.

Cathay Financial, Taiwan's biggest financial holding company, rose 0.2 per cent.

The Taiwan dollar jumped 1.141 per cent to TW$30.509 to the US dollar, marking strong gains for the second session.

REUTERS