Root Cause of Taiwan's Stock Market Plunge of 2,000 Points Identified? Expert Reveals Market Panic Trigger: 'Shoot at Shadows'

Selling pressure in U.S. tech stocks spilled over into Asian markets, triggering broad declines today (28th). South Korea's KOSPI plunged over 8%, activating a circuit breaker, while Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped more than 4%. Taiwan's stock market, dragged down by a sell-off in chip stocks, plummeted 2,069.19 points during the session—marking the fifth-largest single-day point drop in history—breaking below the 42,000 level and hitting a low of 41,565.00.

In response, financial Facebook page 'Uncle's U.S. Stock Notes' posted that the selloff was triggered by rumors of China beginning small-scale production of its own immersion DUV lithography machines. 'Markets really shoot at shadows,' the post noted. In the short term, it does not consider this a threat to ASML, but from an industry perspective, there is a world of difference between building a machine and building one that operates stably 24/7, maintains yield and precision, and can be quickly repaired when broken. 'A car with four wheels and a steering wheel is still a car—but would you dare drive it?'

Could China replace ASML? 'They've built a machine, but the key is yield,' said Uncle's U.S. Stock Notes. Foreign media recently reported that China has started producing self-developed immersion DUV scanners, aiming to manufacture five units this year and ramp up to 20 next year—causing ASML's stock to drop over 5%.

The analyst emphasized that 'just because you see five machines doesn't mean you should assume 500 and rush to declare China has broken ASML's monopoly.' While acknowledging this as a milestone in China's semiconductor equipment localization, the real moat of ASML lies not in a single machine, but in its integrated expertise: optics, lasers, precision stages, computational lithography, control software, maintenance services, and decades of accumulated process data—know-how co-developed with customers.

Even if China produces 20 machines by 2027, it doesn't automatically translate to market share gains for ASML, as acceptance testing, production capacity, and yield remain unknown. Moreover, critical components are still sourced from Japan, underscoring that the situation is far more complex than perceived. Still, the analyst acknowledged this as a significant milestone—China is now compelled to build its own DUV systems, processes, and supply chains out of necessity.

Additional exclusive reports from Wind Media: · Will China's mass production of DUV scanners severely hurt ASML? Expert recalls four past 'wolf-cry' market events: Main players use dips to accumulate positions · Taiwan's large-cap ETFs like 0050 and 006208 tumble amid market selloff; Juan Mu-hua names one ETF as 'ultra-resilient': maximum drawdown in single digits · Could Taiwan's stock market keep falling? Juan Mu-hua previews six key events next week: These two days will be market stress tests