Geoff Yu at BNY says Taiwan’s strong equity performance in 2026 largely coincides with net institutional outflows from US pensions and hedge funds, while APAC and EMEA investors provide support. TWD FX activity remains subdued and tied to rebalancing rather than directional demand, with the Taiwan currency still looking fundamentally undervalued.
TAIEX Strength, Dim TWD Flow
“Taiwan appears to be an outlier, with TWD activity linked more to periodic rebalancing than outright directional equity demand. Both currencies still appear fundamentally undervalued, which helps explain why investor interest remains even without meaningful FX appreciation.”
“Taiwan: Taiwan equities saw net institutional outflows of $1.73 billion year-on-year. Again, the US was the main seller with net sales of $4.33 billion. US pension funds and hedge funds led the move, accounting for about 75% of total sales from the region.”
“Taiwan was looking more like a rotation rather than an exit. The market also saw heavy semiconductor selling ($5.59 billion), but this was offset by buying in technology hardware (+$3.74 billion), capital goods (+$232 million) and banks (+$132 million). The message: investors were not exiting Taiwan wholesale.”
“By investor type in Taiwan: The mix was different. Pension funds ($3.12 billion) and hedge funds ($1.78 billion) were the main sellers, while government and agency accounts bought $906 million. Taiwan’s selling was less mutual-fund driven and more concentrated in pensions and hedge funds than South Korea’s.”
“Taiwan is very quiet. TWD activity is still low. Spot volumes, which track equity purchases more directly, are below the rolling one-year average.”
(This article was created with the help of an artificial intelligence tool and reviewed by an editor.)
