Taiwan stocks at 2-1/2-year high

Taiwan stocks rose 0.59 percent to a two and half year closing high on Monday, paced by gains in financial firms and hotel operators including Grand Formosa amid investor optimism that they will benefit from improving Taiwan-China trade ties. "Foreign investors were still net buyers today, with banking and traditional stocks attracting most interest," said Andrew Deng, an assistant vice president at Taiwan International Securities.
The main TAIEX share index ended 52.8 points higher at 9,025.30, the first time since May 2008 it topped 9,000. The index rose 9.6 percent in 2010. Among the top gainers, financials and tourism shares both jumped over 2 percent. Construction shares also climbed 1.8 percent. Grand Formosa rose 4.5 percent. Cathay Financial, the biggest financial holding firm and parent of Taiwan's largest insurer, rose 2.7 percent. But electronics slipped 0.28 percent on concerns of forex losses triggered by the stronger local currency.