Taiwan TAIEX Plunges 3,737.67 Points in Biggest Intraday Drop as Technology Shares Slide

Key Facts

Taiwan’s TAIEX plunged 3,737.67 points within minutes of the market open on November 6, marking the biggest intraday point drop in the market’s history, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency. The index fell below 40,000 points and also dropped below its 240-day moving average of about 38,827 points. It hit a low of 37,837.05 points after trading began at 9 a.m. It then recovered some losses, ending the session down 1,873.08 points, or 4.51%, at 39,701.64 points. Trading value reached NT$1.25 trillion, the agency said.

Pressure was concentrated in technology and semiconductor shares, led by TSMC, which accounts for more than 40% of the market’s total value, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency. The stock fell to its daily limit of NT$2,020 shortly after trading began, down NT$220. That was the largest absolute intraday price drop in the stock’s history. The decline cut the company’s market value by about NT$5.7 trillion. Given the company’s weight in the market, its shares were at the center of the selling wave that drove the index to its low.

The declines spread to other Taiwanese technology and electronics companies. MediaTek fell to its daily limit at NT$3,115, while Delta Electronics hit its daily limit at NT$1,020. Foxconn, known globally as Hon Hai Precision Industry, fell more than 9%, the agency reported. The moves showed that the selling wave hit a group of major listed companies, not just TSMC. The session followed declines in other markets, amid growing concerns about artificial intelligence shares and spending on the sector’s infrastructure.

The Associated Press said investor concerns included the possibility of a slowdown in AI data center construction after borrowing costs rose, as well as criticism that AI stock prices had climbed too far and entered bubble territory. The agency added that sweeping Democratic victories in the U.S. midterm elections raised the prospect that governments could impose a halt on additional data center construction. Any slowdown in construction could reduce purchases of AI chips, the agency said. These concerns remain tied to the possibility of future spending changes, as shares of Taiwanese chipmakers and technology companies fell. The Asian sell-off was not confined to the island; the Associated Press linked the region’s market declines to turmoil in U.S. stocks.

Taiwan’s session followed sharp losses on Wall Street on Thursday, November 5. The S&P 500 fell 334.89 points, or 4.4%, to 7,353.73, while the Dow Jones declined 1,833.06 points, or 3.4%, to 51,523.06. The Nasdaq also lost 1,421.52 points, or 5.5%, closing at 24,315, according to the Associated Press. In Asia on Friday morning, Japan’s Nikkei fell more than 6% after trading opened, and other Asian indexes also declined. By midday, the Nikkei was down 5.7% at 57,576.63, while South Korea’s Kospi fell 7.4% to 4,985.99; Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.0% to 8,973, the agency said.

The TAIEX had closed at 45,211.83 points on October 30, then at 41,574.72 points on November 5, according to EL7 daily data. Over the same period, U.S.-listed TSM shares fell from $406.13 on October 30 to $353.1 at the November 5 close. These closing levels provide context for the index and stock declines in the days before Friday’s session, while the 3,737.67-point loss was a record intraday drop, not a closing loss. For subsequent trading, analysts cited by Taiwan’s Central News Agency warned that the index could face a wave of selling linked to margin calls. They advised investors to wait for technical signals that the market had stabilized.

The U.S. October jobs report was scheduled for release on Friday, November 6, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calendar. The release was due on the same day Taiwanese stocks and Asian markets fell, following the previous session’s decline in U.S. indexes. Investors tracked the jobs report as part of that day’s economic data schedule, according to the official release time. Market concerns in Asia linked possible changes to data center policies with future demand for AI chips. The next step cited by analysts in Taiwan remained monitoring technical indicators for signs that the market had stabilized.