New Taiwan Dollar Fluctuates with Over 20-Cent Spread, Closes at 32.375 Amid 3-Cent Depreciation

The New Taiwan Dollar (NTD) fluctuated today (22), facing persistent capital outflow pressures, briefly nearing the psychological 32.5 level. It closed at 32.375, down 3 cents, with Taipei Forex Brokerage Company's trading volume shrinking to USD 2.139 billion.

Opening at 32.36 (down 1.5 cents), the NTD saw increased volatility, reaching a high of 32.28. However, after midday, strong buying demand for foreign exchange pushed it down to a low of 32.49, resulting in a full-day high-low spread of 2.1 cents.

Among major Asian currencies, the Thai baht depreciated nearly 0.3%, the Chinese yuan fell about 0.1%, and the NTD closed down 0.09%. The U.S. dollar index dipped slightly by less than 0.05%, while the Japanese yen and Singapore dollar rose slightly by around 0.05%, and the South Korean won gained approximately 0.1%.

Under pressure from foreign exchange markets, Taiwan's stock market failed to hold onto the 45,000-point level. Yuanta Investment Consulting noted that TSMC executives have repeatedly emphasized strong AI customer demand, no intention of ceding business, and significant increases in capital expenditures in the U.S. Given these factors, the emergence of bottom-fishing buying in Taiwan's AI supply chain stocks after a sharp decline was expected.

However, Yuanta Investment Consulting believes that ongoing geopolitical tensions and uncertainty over whether deleveraging risks in the Korean stock market have subsided suggest a higher likelihood of the market entering a range-bound trading phase in the near future.