US Tech Stocks Plunge, Philadelphia Semiconductor Index Drops 7.2%
Market concerns over monetization of artificial intelligence investments heated up, sending US tech stocks sharply lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 572.25 points or 1.09% to close at 51770.31, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 140.32 points or 1.82% to close at 7580.07, the Nasdaq Index fell 747.72 points or 2.86% to close at 25437, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunged 829.398 points or 7.2% to close at 10688.801. TSMC American depositary receipts fell 5.95%, Nvidia dropped 4.22%, AMD plunged 10.88%, Intel tumbled 28.58%, Marvell, Qualcomm and SanDisk fell more than 10%, Broadcom fell 5.48%, memory maker SK Hynix American depositary shares fell 7.95%, and Micron fell 5.3%.
Taiwan Futures Night Session Falls Below 45,000, Foreign Short Positions Rise
Taiwan stock index futures night session fell below 45,000, dropping 867 points to close at 44433, while TSMC futures night session fell 87 points to close at 2289. In net positions in Taiwan stock index futures, the three major institutional investors increased net short positions by 501 contracts to 1294 contracts on the 30th, of which foreign investors increased net short positions by 2719 contracts to 92, 2241 contracts. Taiwan's weighted index fell 1156.5 points on the 30th to close at 45211.83, losing the half-year moving average of about 45315. The three major institutional investors sold a net NT$1398.44 billion combined, including NT$513.7 billion in net sales by proprietary dealers, NT$239.93 billion in net purchases by investment trusts, and NT$1124.67 billion in net sales by foreign and mainland investors. Foreign investors' cumulative net sales in Taiwan stocks in October reached NT$9943 billion, continuing to reduce holdings including TSMC, MediaTek, Delta Electronics and other electronics heavyweights.
Institutional Investors: AI Fundamentals Have Not Turned Bearish, Capital Concentrating Toward Large Firms
Huang Wen-ching, strategist at Taishin Investment Advisory, analyzed that US and Taiwan stock markets are in the midst of a super earnings season, with the US midterm elections next week, and the market is shrouded in worries that AI burns too much money and monetizes too slowly. But on the whole, AI industry fundamentals have not turned bearish, including Meta, Alphabet and Amazon whose capital expenditures have not been cut, and Microsoft's capital expenditure plans are also not affected by weakening demand. It is expected that emerging cloud operators have weaker financial resilience, and capital may concentrate further toward large firms in the future. Institutional analysis指出, major Taiwan and US electronics and technology companies have successively reported earnings, with revenues and profits continuing to grow benefiting from strong AI industry demand. However, cloud service giants and AI chip makers continue to increase investment in key components and equipment for AI infrastructure, with expanding financing scale, and the market worries about the impact on cash flow and investment monetization capability in the AI industry, with bubble concerns remaining.
Taiwan Stocks May Test 45,000-Point Support Next Week
Observing Taiwan stock trends, Huang Wen-ching said that since October international technology stocks have corrected significantly, and Taiwan stocks have been relatively resilient versus the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index and neighboring South Korean股市, but the high level has also made them a source of cash for foreign investors, with short-term chip-settling pressure from domestic investors selling into each other. Ahead, watch for signs of stabilization, whether the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index can stand back above the annual moving average, whether recently weak Delta Electronics, UMC and others turn positive, and whether margin balances ease significantly. Looking ahead, institutional investors pointed out that early November brings the variable of the US midterm elections, international oil prices remain high recently, the Middle East situation remains unclear, plus the magnet effect of Anthropic's public offering filing, with some international funds standing by or withdrawing from Asian股市. Taiwan stocks may face significant pullback pressure at next week's open, electronics heavyweights will remain under pressure, and the weighted index will test support at the 45,000 mark, watching whether it can hold the intraday low of 44726 on the 30th, waiting for a bottoming signal, and observing whether the number of declining listed companies narrows and whether trading volume can recover.