Taiwan stocks hit 3-month high amid mixed Asian markets

Reuters

Taiwan stocks hit 3-month high amid mixed Asian markets

2024 10월 18 일, 오전 7:52 GMT

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Taiwan stocks jump as much as 2.9%

Asia EM stocks set for weekly gains

Thailand to hold rates in Dec - Reuters Poll

By Ayushman Ojha and Adwitiya Srivastava

Oct 18 (Reuters) -Taiwan shares jumped to a three-month high on Friday, boosted by chipmaker TSMC hitting a record peak on upbeat earnings, while other Asian stock markets were mixed on concerns about China's economy.

Data from China showed that its economy grew at the slowest pace since early 2023 in the third quarter, as a tumbling property sector remains a major challenge for Beijing.

Taiwanese stocks .TWII climbed as much as 2.9% to their highest since mid-July, while Thai shares .SETI rose 0.5% and were set for a weekly gain of about 2.1%, their biggest since late September.

Indonesian stocks .JKSE were on track for a gain of nearly 3% for the week, their biggest since mid-May, while South Korean shares .KS11 were headed for a second straight weekly rise.

Meanwhile, most Asian currencies inched higher but were set for weekly falls as the dollar gained on the back of strong U.S. data.

The Philippine peso PHP= was 0.5% higher, but set for a fourth consecutive weekly fall. The Malaysian ringgit MYR= was up 0.2%, but poised for a third consecutive weekly decline.

The South Korean won KRW=KFTC inched up 0.1%, but was on track for a third consecutive weekly fall.

In contrast, the Thai baht THB=TH was set to gain 0.6% this week and the Indonesian rupiah IDR= rise 0.7%.

"The fact that currencies remain under a little bit of pressure is a deterrent to some central banks from further easing. That's particularly the case for those central banks who are more concerned about that," said Robert Carnell, regional head of research, Asia Pacific at ING.

"Bank Indonesia is more concerned about their currency than Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)."

Earlier this week, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) surprisingly cut its key interest rate, while the Philippine central bank lowered rates and Bank Indonesia maintained the status quo as expected.

The BOT will hold its key interest rate at its final policy meeting for the year in December, according to a Reuters poll, while the BSP had indicated of another cut in December.

Next week, investors will focus on Malaysia, which is scheduled to report its advance estimates for third-quarter GDP on Oct. 21.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** China's Q3 GDP hits weakest pace since early 2023, backs calls for more stimulus

** Bank of Thailand to hold rates at 2.25% for rest of this year, cut in Q1

Asian currencies and stocks at 0701 GMT
COUNTRY	FX RIC	FX DAILY %	FX YTD %	INDEX	STOCKS DAILY %	STOCKS YTD %
Japan	JPY=	+0.13	-5.96	.N225	0.18	16.49
China	CNY=CFXS	+0.19	-0.17	.SSEC	3.53	10.29
India	INR=IN	+0.00	-1.02	.NSEI	0.15	14.06
Indonesia	IDR=	+0.23	-0.39	.JKSE	0.01	6.37
Malaysia	MYR=	+0.16	+6.74	.KLSE	0.39	13.28
Philippines	PHP=	+0.50	-3.72	.PSI	-0.04	14.69
S.Korea	KRW=KFTC	+0.12	-6.06	.KS11	-0.59	-2.31
Singapore	SGD=	+0.08	+0.48	.STI	0.45	12.39
Taiwan	TWD=TP	+0.34	-4.13	.TWII	1.88	30.99
Thailand	THB=TH	+0.15	+3.22	.SETI	0.46	6.07