Taiwan Stock Market Fails Again to Break 45,000; Retail Investor Funds Drop by NT$80.2 Billion in June; Transcend Earns 2.77x Full-Year EPS in Q2

July 24 Pre-Market Briefing on Taiwan Stocks

1. On July 23, the Taiwan stock market failed again to break through the 45,000-point level, closing at 44,850 points with a modest gain of 25 points. Trading volume decreased to NT$892.5 billion. All three major institutional investors were net buyers, collectively purchasing NT$16.4 billion. Foreign investors showed strong confidence in Wistron (3231-TW) due to the opening of its new U.S. plant, buying 79,000 lots—marking four consecutive days of buying. They also purchased shares in the 'Three Treasures' of the Formosa Plastics Group (1301-TW). Conversely, investment trusts took an opposing stance, heavily buying financial stocks.

2. On July 23, the Central Bank released June's domestic financial data. The securities settlement account balance, widely regarded as the 'retail investor sentiment indicator,' decreased by NT$8.02 billion from the previous month to NT$4.4237 trillion, ending two consecutive months of growth. Despite this, it remained the second-highest monthly level on record, just below the previous month. The central bank noted, 'Taiwanese people save quite a lot.' However, as Central Bank Governor Yang Jin-long previously stated, it will continue monitoring large-scale fund flows into the stock market.

3. On July 23, the depreciation pressure on the New Taiwan Dollar eased significantly, with the currency appreciating throughout most of the day. It closed at NT$32.266, up NT$1.09 from the previous day. The trading volume at Taipei Forex Brokers reached USD 1.947 billion, within the normal range of recent trading activity.

4. Transcend (2451-TW) announced its Q2 financial results on July 23. The company reported a post-tax net profit of NT$11.9 billion, a 46.5% increase from the previous quarter. The quarterly earnings per share (EPS) reached NT$27.70, surpassing the full-year profits of previous years. Cumulative revenue for the first half of the year reached NT$32.44 billion, nearly doubling last year's full-year revenue. The first-half EPS of NT$46.63 set a new record high for the company's semi-annual performance since its establishment.

5. CWT (5609-TW), a freight forwarding company, recently stated that supply and demand in the shipping market remain relatively balanced this year. However, a large number of new vessels are scheduled for delivery between 2027 and 2028, which will gradually usher the global shipping market into a new competitive cycle. Market conditions are highly volatile, and visibility for the fourth quarter of this year remains limited.

6. Purrex (6472-TW) announced on July 23 that its Maple Grove facility in Minnesota, USA, which features large-scale oral solid dosage production capacity, has welcomed its first Asian new drug client. It signed a manufacturing cooperation agreement with Onconic Therapeutics, a new drug development company under Korea’s First Chemical, to support the U.S. clinical development and subsequent commercial-scale production preparation of JAQBO, a potassium-competitive acid blocker (P-CAB) tablet for treating gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).