twn dlr 0409 / 1278 /33.777/ +11

16:51 09Apr09 RTRS-Taiwan dollar firms on exporters, foreign funds * Taiwan dollar rises as exporters sell U.S. dollars * Foreign fund inflows in stocks also lift currency * Rising stocks, Korean provide added boost (Adds details, quotes) TAIPEI, April 9 (Reuters) - The Taiwan dollar rose on Thursday due to exporter sales of U.S. dollars and foreign fund inflows in the equity market, though the central bank tempered the gains. The Taiwan dollar ended stronger at T$33.777 to the U.S. dollar from the previous close of T$33.900, which was a one-week closing low. Volume on the main Taipei Forex Inc exchange was moderate at $1.278 billion, higher than $1.154 billion a day earlier. "There were some exporters selling U.S. dollars since the Taiwan dollar had been weakening sharply over the past few sessions," said a dealer in Taipei. Dealers said some exporters also sold U.S. dollars given the Taiwan dollar's sharp falls over the past few days, which allowed them to convert their foreign currency earnings to more of the local currency. "Taiwan stocks rose quite strongly and so did the Korean won. We'll be watching these two factors again tomorrow for leads in the Taiwan dollar market," the dealer said. Taiwan stocks <.TWII> ended 4.1 percent higher, mainly led by technology shares. The Korean won was rose 2.4 percent as the country raised a bigger-than-planned $3 billion in sovereign bonds and as the central bank said an economic downturn was moderating. Six-month NDFs were quoted at -0.450/-0.400 compared with -0.350/-0.310 in the previous session, indicating that the market expects the Taiwan dollar to strengthen by a larger degree in half a year. On the smaller Cosmos exchange , the Taiwan dollar rose to T$33.775 to the U.S. dollar from the previous close of T$33.868. (Reporting by Yvette Chen and Lee Chyen Yee; Editing by Ken Wills) ((chyenyee.lee@thomsonreuters.com; +886 2 2508-0815; Reuters Messaging: chyenyee.lee.reuters.com@reuters.net)) ((If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)) Keywords: MARKETS TAIWAN CURRENCY/
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