TAIPEI, March 2 (Reuters) - Taiwan's top financial
regulator said on Thursday he was confident in the fundamentals
of the island's stock market despite rising geopolitical risks,
adding that in "special circumstances" he would consider
measures to protect investors.
Tension between Taiwan and China, which views the
democratically governed island as its territory, has risen in
the past three years with Beijing staging regular military
exercises in Taiwan's vicinity.
Taiwan's benchmark stock index fell 22% last year,
partially on concern about the rising risk, though also due to
aggressive U.S. interest rate increases and U.S. dollar strength
as well as worries over slowing global growth.
Huang Tien-mu, head of the Financial Supervisory Commission,
said geopolitical risks had some impact on the stock market, but
it has seen a 3,000-point rebound from last year's lows,
indicating that it remained resilient and sound.
"I'm certainly confident" in the market's fundamentals, he
told parliament as he responded to questions from members of
the legislature.
Taiwan's stock market does not generally react to spikes in
tension with China. On Thursday, the index closed flat despite
the defence ministry reporting a second day of large-scale
Chinese air force incursions nearby.
Taiwan recorded net inflows of foreign funds in January and
February, compared with a total net outflow of T$1.4 trillion
($45.66 billion) in 2022, Huang said.
He said he could not answer as to whether a risk of war with
China was the biggest "black swan" - an event that comes as a
major surprise or has a major effect - for the stock market,
saying that was a theoretical question.
"Under special circumstances, we'd consider special measures
to ensure depositors' confidence in banks and their information
security as well as their continued operation," he said, without
elaborating.
($1 = 30.6640 Taiwan dollars)
(Reporting by Faith Hung; Editing by Ben Blanchard, Robert
Birsel)
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.