Taiwan equities finished the trading session lower on Friday, with the Taiwan Weighted dropping 4.35% at the close. Market declines were broad-based, led by losses in the Glass and Electricity sectors that weighed on the benchmark.
Among individual movers, Shin Shin Natural Gas Co Ltd (TW:9918) was the session's top performer, rising 9.99% - an increase of 4.20 points - to end at 46.25. LIWANLI Innovation Co Ltd (TW:3054) gained 9.93%, climbing 3.75 points to finish at 41.50, while Hsin Kao Gas Co Ltd (TW:9931) advanced 9.90% or 3.50 points to close at 38.85.
Conversely, a number of stocks posted heavy declines. Yeong Guan Energy Technology Group Co Ltd (TW:1589) fell 10.00% - down 1.01 points - to trade at 9.09 at the close. Nan Ya Printed Circuit Board Corp (TW:8046) declined 10.00%, a drop of 50.00 points to finish at 450.00, and Prime Electronics & Satellitics Inc (TW:6152) slipped 9.98% or 2.20 points to end the session at 19.85.
On breadth measures, the report indicated that falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Taiwan Stock Exchange by 0 to 0.
Several companies also marked notable price milestones during the session. Shin Shin Natural Gas (TW:9918) rose to a three-year high, gaining 9.99% to reach 46.25. Yeong Guan Energy Technology Group (TW:1589) fell to an all-time low after dropping 10.00% to 9.09. Hsin Kao Gas (TW:9931) climbed to a 52-week high following its 9.90% advance to 38.85.
Commodities and currency markets showed mixed moves. Crude oil for April delivery fell 0.47% - down 0.38 - to $80.63 a barrel. Brent oil for May delivery decreased 0.22% or 0.19 to $85.22 a barrel. The April Gold Futures contract rose 0.89%, an increase of 45.04, to trade at $5,123.74 a troy ounce.
On the currency front, USD/TWD was reported down 0.69% to 31.68, while TWD/CNY was unchanged 0.46% to 0.22. The US Dollar Index Futures was lower by 0.24% at 99.07.
Markets closed with a mix of sharp single-stock moves and broad index weakness. The session combined strong percentage gains in select small-cap names with double-digit declines in others, contributing to a substantial drop in the Taiwan Weighted by the end of trading.