stock / 32.818 / 1099 / +7.8

15:24 30Jun09 RTRS-Taiwan stocks log best q/q gain in 8 yrs; Q3 bumpy * LEDs lead gains on expectations of new orders * Powerchip plunges after Elpida says TMC to take stake in it * Analysts warn of bumpy start to Q3 after strong Q2 * Electronics expected to lead gains in Q3 (Updates to close; adds details, quotes) TAIPEI, June 30 (Reuters) - Taiwan stocks closed up 0.64 percent on Tuesday to log their best quarterly gain in eight years, with technology shares leading gains, but Powerchip <5346.two> plunged on fears its partner Elpida could leave their alliance. The main TAIEX share index <.TWII> ended up 41.01 points at 6,432.16. It has gained about 23 percent this quarter, its best quartly gain since the fourth quarter of 2001, when the index jumped more than 52 percent. However, the index's momentum appears to be paring off as it has dropped nearly 7 percent over the past month as investors worry about the sustainability of the current rally that has seen it outperform most other stock markets globally. Turnover was thin at T$90.2 billion ($2.7 billion) compared with T$90 billion on Tuesday, with most investors staying away on a lack of clear direction and in view of a shortened trading week in the United States. "We could be in for a bumpy start for the third quarter," said Alex Huang, a research director at Mega International Securities Co. "However, things may turn for the better as we step into the middle of the third quarter when electronics giants report their financial results, which may help calm investor sentiment by offering a clearer outlook." Powerchip <5346.two>, Taiwan's top DRAM chipmaker, fell by its 7 percent daily limit after its technology partner Elpida <6665.t> said Taiwan Memory Co (TMC) was seeking to take a stake of about 10 percent in the Japanese company. [ID:nTFD006284] Powerchip had previously declined to join TMC, which is a computer chip company set up by the Taiwanese government to help consolidate the struggling sector as it tries to emerge from its worst-ever downturn. Leading gains were LED (light-emitting diode) shares, with LED chip supplier Epistar <2448.tw> and Formosa Epistaxy <3061.tw> rising 0.57 percent and 2.69 percent, respectively. Their shares were further boosted by local media reports that a group of buyers from China would order about $1.5 billion ($45.68 million) worth of equipment from them. Analysts said they expected the electronics sector to lead gains in the third quarter, following a strong showing by financial shares <.TFNI> in the previous three months, which had risen 42 percent on the back of closer ties with China. "Don't put too much hope on financial shares now," said Haung, who added that financial shares had been underperforming the big board for two sessions, and that he expected the trend to continue. Major financial holding companies such as Cathay Financial <2882.tw> and Chinatrust Financial <2891.tw> dropped 1.92 and 2.94 percent, respectively. Taishin Financial <2887.tw> bucked the trend, rising 2.93 percent after a local newspaper reported that it was in talks with four Chinese banks, and that it could sign an agreement with one of them on closer co-operation in August. --------------------TAIEX IN PERSPECTIVE-------------------- Move on day 0.64 percent Close on day 6432.16 2009 intraday high 7,084.83 2009 intraday low 4,164.19 All time high 12,682.41 12 FEB 1990 ------------------------------------------------------------ For a table of foreign trading in Taiwan stocks, double-click on [ID:nTP170358] (Reporting by Joan Hsu;) ((If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)) ASIA-PACIFIC STOCK MARKETS: Pan-Asia......[STXNEWS/AS] Japan........[.T] S.Korea....[.KS] S.E. Asia............[.SO] Hong Kong...[.HK] Taiwan.....[.TW] Australia/NZ.........[.AX] India.......[.BO] China......[.SS] OTHER MARKETS: Wall Street...........[.N] Gold.........[GOL/] Currency..[FRX/] Eurostocks...........[.EU] Oil...........[O/R] JP bonds...[JP/] ADR Report..........[ADR/] LME metals..[MET/L] US bonds...[US/] Stocks News US...[STXNEWS/US] Stocks News Europe...[STXNEWS/EU] DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary & data Asia earnings diary [ASIA/EQTY] U.S. earnings diary [RESF/US] European diary [WEU/EQTY] Taiwan diary [TW/DIARY] Wall Street Week Ahead [.N/O] Eurostocks Week Ahead [.EU/O] World forecasts TOP NEWS: For top Asian company news, double click on: [nTOPEQA] U.S. company news [TOP/EQU] European company news [TOP/EQE] Forex news [TOP/FRX] Global Economy news [TOP/MACRO] Technology news [TOP/TECH] Telecoms news [TOP/TELCO] Media news [TOP/MEDIA] Banking news [TOP/FIN] Politics/General news [TOP/G] Asia Macro data A multimedia version of Reuters Top News is available at: http://topnews.session.rservices.com LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks <0#.index> Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ <.DJI> <.IXIC> Nikkei <.N225> FTSE 100 <.FTSE> Debt <0#usbmk=> Taiwan dollar LME price overview TAIWAN MARKET: Taiwan equity mkt TAIEX <.TWII><.TV.TW> Other indices <0#.inx.tw> TAISDAQ <.TWOII><.TV.TWO> TAIMEX Taiwan index futures <0#tx:> MSCI Taiwan index <.MSTW> SIMEX Taiwan index futures <0#stw:> FTSE TW50 index <.FTSETW50> ($1=32.84 Taiwan Dollar) Keywords: MARKETS TAIWAN STOCKS/
For Related News, Double Click on one of these codes:[M] [T] [E] [D] [Z] [MF] [PSC] [RNP] [DNP] [PTD] [PMF] [TW] [ASIA] [STX] [EMRG] [LEN] [RTRS] [.TW] [.TWII] [.MSTW] For Relevant Price Information, Double Click on one of these codes:<.TWII> <.MSTW> Tuesday, 30 June 2009 15:24:49RTRS [nTP56158] {EN}ENDS