Taiwan stocks up

Taiwan stocks ended up 0.26 percent on Thursday, led by gains in glass and cement makers including Taiwan Cement amid hopes they will benefit from improving business ties with China and the mainland's strong economic growth. Hon Hai Precision rose 1.9 percent, boosting electronics 0.44 percent higher. Hon Hai is among the suppliers to Apple Inc that have begun production of white iPhones, two people familiar with the situation said.
Glass and cement were among the top three winners, both rising more than 3 percent. The main TAIEX index ended up 22.53 points at 8,802.73. Taiwan Cement, the island's biggest cement maker with production in China, rose 2.2 percent. Tourism stocks rose 0.82 percent. Taiwan is set to allow individual Chinese tourists to the island starting from the Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on June 6, local media reported.