U.S. dollar suffers steepest daily decline on Taipei forex since 2002

Taipei, Could 2 (CNA) The U.S. greenback dropped 3.07 p.c in opposition to the Taiwan greenback Friday, the biggest singe day fall since 2002, within the wake of enormous international fund inflows, sellers stated.

The buck closed down NT$0.953 or 3.07 p.c at NT$31.064 in opposition to the Taiwan greenback, the bottom since Jan. 9, 2024, when the U.S. forex ended at NT$31.023.

The U.S. greenback’s sharp losses on Friday made the Taiwan greenback the strongest-performing forex in Asia. As compared, the South Korean received rose 0.81 p.c, the Singapore greenback gained 0.19 p.c, the Japanese yen fell 1.61 p.c in opposition to the buck, and the Chinese language yuan was little modified.

Sellers stated that with the U.S. greenback dipping to the day’s low of NT$30.770, down greater than NT$1.20 throughout the session, the central financial institution stepped in to cap the losses suffered by the buck and ease market volatility, however the financial institution’s shopping for of the U.S. greenback was restricted.

The central financial institution launched a press release Friday night, admitting its intervention within the native international trade market within the day.

Along with the fund inflows, the U.S. greenback additionally got here underneath strain because the native inventory market steamed forward led by the bellwether electronics sector, with the benchmark weighted index on the Taiwan Inventory market hovering 552.61 factors, or 2.73 p.c, to shut on the day’s excessive of 20,787.64, sellers stated.

Overseas institutional buyers purchased a web NT$38.77 billion price of shares on the native principal board Friday, growing the downward strain on the U.S. greenback all through the session, sellers added.

For the week, the U.S. unit shed NT$1.462, or 4.71 p.c, in opposition to the Taiwan greenback, marking the fifth consecutive week the forex has fallen on the Taipei international trade market.

In one other assertion launched Thursday, the central financial institution stated it has not acquired any request from the U.S. Division of the Treasury to push for an appreciation of the Taiwan greenback, amid hypothesis fueled by the forex’s current sharp rise in opposition to the U.S. greenback.

In response to the fast appreciation of the Taiwan greenback on Friday, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) stated the international trade fee is essentially dictated by worldwide market situations, and that the federal government didn’t come underneath any strain to push up the native forex’s worth.

Cho emphasised the worth of the Taiwan greenback is set by a market mechanism.

Hsu Wen-tung (許文通), chief secretary of the Taiwan Affiliation of Equipment Trade, in the meantime, instructed CNA {that a} sharply stronger Taiwan greenback is anticipated to undermine the competitiveness of Taiwanese equipment exporters within the world market and result in international trade losses.

Hsu urged the federal government to do its finest to stabilize the Taiwan greenback and known as for permitting the native forex to depreciate in opposition to the U.S. greenback.

Amid uncertainties stemming from the Trump administration’s tariff insurance policies, a stronger Taiwan greenback has added to the challenges confronted by equipment suppliers, Hsu stated.