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15:06 08Oct09 RTRS-Taiwan stocks fall, hurt by tech shares * Mediatek, TSMC push technology shares lower * PC shares down after Microsoft pares Windows 7 expectations * Asset plays up on stronger local currency * HTC slips on concerns of shrinking market share (Adds details) TAIPEI, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Taiwan stocks fell 1.38 percent on Thursday to back off a near 16-month closing high on Wednesday as doubts about the outlook for tech firms prompted some profit taking on recent gains. The main TAIEX share index <.TWII> closed 105.35 points lower at 7,503.31 following three days of gains. Turnover was T$161 billion ($5 billion), roughly in line with Wednesday. "Taiwan stocks paused for breath after their latest set of gains, with technology shares contributing to the session's fall as their sales have peaked and have mostly been factored in by the market," said John Chiu, a vice president at Fuh Hwa Securities Investment Trust. UMC , the world's second-largest contract chipmaker, dropped 3.14 percent ahead of its September sales report. After the market had closed, the company reported September sales rose 18 percent from a year earlier. [ID:nTPU001737] The electronics sub-index <.TELI> fell 1.93 percent. Citigroup gave a bearish outlook for UMC, saying the company could face growing pricing pressure from rivals. Shares in TSMC <2330.tw>, the world's largest contract chipmaker, fell 1.93 percent. Topping the list of most-active stocks by turnover was chip designer Mediatek <2454.tw>, which shed 4.39 percent even after reporting on Wednesday a 16 percent increase in September sales from a year earlier. [ID:nTP128196] Smartphone maker HTC <2498.tw> shed 3.33 percent after analysts from Goldman Sachs and HSBC lowered their ratings and target price on the firm on worries about its shrinking market share and smaller margins. Notebook PC makers, such as Acer <2353.tw> and Asustek <2357.tw>, also came under pressure after Microsoft said on Wednesday the effect of its next-generation Windows 7 operating system on PC sales could be muted. [ID:nL7114842] Acer was down 0.24 percent, while smaller rival Asustek slipped a bigger 1.96 percent. The broader computer and peripherals sub-index <.TCPI> was down 1.79 percent. However, firms with large land assets, including Yulon Motor <2201.tw> and Formosan Rubber <2107.tw>, jumped 2.16 percent and 3.88 percent, respectively, following a stronger local dollar. The Taiwan dollar has been cruising at a one-year high on fund inflows amid growing hopes that the global economic recovery could help riskier assets such as the local currency and Asian equities. HOT STOCKS -- Contract laptop PC maker Inventec <2356.tw> climbed 0.76 percent after a newspaper reported that it will form a joint venture with TPV Technology to manufacture All-In-One desktop PCs. ---------------------TAIEX IN PERSPECTIVE------------------ Move on day -1.38 pct Close on day 7,503.31 2009 intraday high 7,635.66 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; editing by Neil Fullick)) ((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]
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