tw market 0408

14:15 08Apr09 RTRS-Financial shares drag Taiwan stocks off 6-mth high * Market off 6-month high as financial shares drop * UMC slides ahead of its March and Q1 sales * Mediatek down despite solid March sales * Tourism issues up on China hopes (Adds details and quotes) By Gina Chang TAIPEI, April 8 (Reuters) - Taiwan stocks fell 2.4 percent on Wednesday, ending a six-session winning streak that pushed the index to a six-month closing high, as investors pocketed recent sharp gains in financial shares ahead of quarterly results. The main TAIEX share index <.TWII> bucked Wall Street losses and traded briefly in the positive territory early in the session. It closed 133.29 points lower at 5,443.56, pulling back from a six-month closing high a day earlier. Turnover was active at T$150.3 billion ($4.4 billion), rising from Tuesday's T$117.4 billion. "There is profit-taking, which is quite reasonable as the market has jumped a lot recently," said Michael On, a managing director of Beyond Asset Management. Financial shares have gained 17 percent in the past six sessions amid closer trade ties with China, outpacing a 7 percent rise on the broader market over the same period. "The TAIEX will pause for a breath and move within a boxed range in the short term," said On, who expected the TAIEX to trade between 5,200-5,600 points this week. The day's biggest loser was the financial sub-index <.TFNI>, which slid 5.47 percent on concerns that Taiwan's legislature might pass a bill on Friday capping the interest rate on credit card loans at 12.5 percent, down from the previous 20 percent. Chinatrust <2891.tw>, Taiwan's top credit card issuer and Cathay Financial <2882.tw>, the island's biggest listed financial holding firm, both dropped more than 6 percent. Sinopac Financial <2890.tw> fell 4.87 percent, succumbing earlier gains after a newspaper said the company was considering investing in Chinese banks in the cities of Yangzhou and Ningbo. The second-biggest loser was the construction sub-index <.TCOI>, which shed 5.33 percent after jumping about 60 percent since the end of February. The electronics sub-index <.TELI> fell 2.24 percent and the semiconductor sub-index <.TSII> was down 2.99 percent. UMC <2303.tw> , the world's No.2 contract chip maker, fell 4.5 percent ahead of announcing its March and first-quarter sales later in the day. Chip designer Mediatek <2454.tw> fell 3.61 percent even after local media said the firm's first-quarter revenue grew by 14.9 percent from the previous three months, exceeding its own previous expectations of 8-13 percent growth. "Tech shares rose a lot previously, but the outlook for the sector remains unclear," said Andrew Deng, a vice president of Taiwan International Securities Corp. "Investors have become more picky. They want to see profits , not just growing sales." AU Optronics <2409.tw>, Taiwan's largest flat-panel maker, fell 2.52 percent despite its March sales rising 43.7 percent from the previous month. [ID:nTP226989] HOT STOCKS -- Acer <2353.tw>, the world's third-largest PC brand, rose 0.36 percent after issuing an upbeat outlook on portable devices. [nTP267622] The firm also said it was in discussions with Chinese telecom operators to sell its smartphone in China. [nTPU001272] -- The tourism sub-index <.THOI> jumped 4.42 percent after a newspaper said the number of tourists from China had reached 150,000 since Taiwan and China signed a landmark trade agreement last year, creating about T$10.2 billion in business on the island. Hotel operator Leofoo Development Co <2705.tw> jumped 4.29 percent and Formosa Hotel <2707.tw> gained by its 7 percent daily limit. --------------------TAIEX IN PERSPECTIVE-------------------- Move on day -2.39 percent Close on day 5,443.56 2009 intraday high 5,624.28 2009 intraday low 4,164.19
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