Foreign Investors Extend Taiwan Stock Selling Streak to Eight Sessions, Net Selling NT$46.147 Billion

Preface

Taiwan’s stock market recovered from the previous session’s sharp decline on the 16th, with the benchmark index rising more than 500 points at one stage. However, heavy selling in large-cap stocks pared the gains, leaving the index up 141.39 points and back above 47,000 points. Trading value contracted to NT$935.9 billion, while the weekly candle ended a four-week winning streak. Foreign investors remained net sellers for an eighth consecutive session, disposing of NT$46.147 billion in Taiwanese shares. Their largest individual-stock sale was Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (台積電, 2330-TW), while Yuanta Taiwan 50 (元大台灣50, 0050-TW) was also heavily sold. This article reviews institutional flows, the leading stocks bought and sold, and the technical levels investors were watching.

Lazy bag

Foreign investors sold NT$46.147 billion on the 16th, extending their selling streak to eight consecutive trading sessions. They sold 22,000 lots of TSMC and 28,000 lots of Yuanta Taiwan 50, while investment trusts bought NT$11.754 billion. The three major institutional investor groups recorded combined net sales of NT$67.806 billion. Although the market rebounded intraday, it closed up only 141.39 points, with trading value falling to NT$935.9 billion. Analysts highlighted 46,795 as a nearby support area and around 47,521 as resistance, while noting that foreign investors’ substantial futures net short position reflected cautious positioning.

Main Body

Market performance and institutional flows

Taiwanese equities began to recover on the 16th after the previous day’s steep sell-off. The benchmark index advanced by more than 500 points during the session, but selling pressure in heavyweight stocks curtailed the rally. The index ultimately rose 141.39 points, returning above 47,000 points. Trading value declined to NT$935.9 billion, and the weekly candle ended a run of four consecutive weekly gains.

Foreign investors were net sellers for the eighth straight trading session, with net sales totaling NT$46.147 billion. Investment trusts moved in the opposite direction, recording net purchases of NT$11.754 billion and extending their buying streak to six sessions. Securities dealers sold NT$33.413 billion. Across the three major institutional investor groups, combined net sales amounted to NT$67.806 billion.

In the futures market, foreign investors reduced their short positions by nearly 3,000 contracts. Despite that reduction, their net short position remained elevated at 93,600 contracts. A separate market positioning figure put the net short position at 93,675 contracts. Together, the cash and futures activity pointed to continued caution among foreign investors, even as the cash market staged a partial rebound.

Foreign investors’ leading purchases

Among the ten stocks and funds with the largest reported foreign net purchases, China Steel (中鋼) led with 43,700 lots. It had been bought for six consecutive sessions. The other listed purchases were Yuanta/P-shares Taiwan Dividend Plus ETF (群益台灣精選高息), 41,200 lots; AUO (友達), 23,300 lots; Hon Hai (鴻海), 22,000 lots; and China Airlines (華航), also 22,000 lots.

The list continued with Taiwan Cooperative Financial Holding (合庫金), 20,600 lots; KGI Financial Holding (凱基金), 19,300 lots; Walsin Technology (華通), 15,300 lots; Taiwan Glass (台玻), 15,000 lots; and Mega Financial Holding (兆豐金), 14,300 lots. These purchases were concentrated in a mix of financial, industrial, technology, transportation, and dividend-oriented securities.

Foreign investors’ leading sales

Foreign investors’ largest net sale was Yuanta Taiwan 50, with 28,300 lots sold. TSMC followed with 22,000 lots; the company had been sold for eight consecutive sessions. Other prominent sales included Nanya Technology (南亞), 18,900 lots; Formosa Plastics (台塑), 14,000 lots; Innolux (群創), 12,100 lots; and KGI Taiwan TOP 50 ETF (凱基台灣TOP50), 10,100 lots.

They also sold 8,092 lots of the Active Uni-President Taiwan Upgrade 50 ETF (主動統一升級50), 7,783 lots of Nanya Technology (南亞科), 7,271 lots of the Active CTBC Taiwan Income ETF (主動中信台灣收益), and 7,215 lots of the Cathay FANG+ ETF (國泰費城半導體). The selling therefore spanned large-cap stocks, passive and active exchange-traded funds, and companies associated with the Formosa Plastics group.

Investment trust activity

Among the investment trusts’ reported leading purchases, the Yuanta High Yield Bond ETF (群益優選非投等債) was adjusted by 36,800 lots, the largest quantity cited in this list. Other listed positions were China Airlines, 5,818 lots; Formosa Petrochemical (台塑化), 4,411 lots; Chunghwa Telecom (中華電), 4,090 lots; Yuanta High Dividend ETF (元大高股息), 4,035 lots; and Da Cang Steel (大成鋼), 3,615 lots.

The remaining names in the purchase list were Evergreen Marine (長榮), 3,077 lots; G-Tech Optoelectronics (金像電), 2,952 lots; and Yang Ming Marine Transport (陽明), 2,657 lots. The source reported nine names in this section while describing it as a top-ten list.

On the sell side, investment trusts sold 18,300 lots of United Microelectronics Corporation (聯電), the largest quantity in the list. They also sold Wistron NeWeb Corporation (緯穎), 4,201 lots; Mega Financial Holding, 3,826 lots; Walsin Lihwa (華新), 3,011 lots; Fubon Financial Holding (富邦金), 2,803 lots; and Primax Electronics (致伸), 2,764 lots.

Further reported sales were 2,602 lots each of Taishin Financial Holding (台新新光金) and Sigurd Microelectronics (矽格), followed by 2,463 lots of Taiwan Cement (台泥) and 2,248 lots of J-MAX (強茂). These transactions show that investment trusts’ buying and selling differed from foreign investors’ activity across several individual stocks.

Technical levels and market structure

Market participants said the index remained below its 5-day and 10-day moving averages. As a result, investors were watching whether the previous session’s low, around 46,795, could hold as near-term support. On the upside, the area around 47,521 was identified as a nearby resistance level.

Analysts noted that a successful retest without a new low, combined with stabilization in TSMC and a renewed advance by semiconductor stocks, could improve the chance of another attempt at resistance. A recovery in trading volume would provide additional support for such a move. In the short term, however, the index was expected to fluctuate around its monthly and quarterly moving averages.

From a technical perspective, the market remained in a weak consolidation pattern. The source characterized the market structure as weak in technology stocks and stronger in financial stocks, while also noting that the index was likely to continue fluctuating around the monthly and quarterly moving averages. From a market-positioning perspective, foreign investors’ NT$46.1 billion in spot-market net sales and a futures net short position reported at 93,675 contracts suggested a cautious, somewhat bearish overall stance.

The session therefore combined a visible intraday rebound with persistent institutional selling and subdued turnover. The key near-term questions were whether the index could maintain support near 46,795, whether heavyweight technology shares would stabilize, and whether trading activity would recover enough to help the market challenge resistance near 47,521.

Key Insights Table