Gaming industry shares profit from the outbreak

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/01/30
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei’s stock market index recorded its steepest one-day fall Thursday (Jan. 30), losing almost 700 points, or 5.75 percent, to close at 11,421.74 points as investor confidence was shaken by the spread of the coronavirus.

While Taiwan has confirmed eight cases of the virus (2019-nCoV) by Thursday, the official number in neighboring China has reached more than 7,700, including at least 170 deaths.

At its lowest point Thursday, the Taiex fell 700 points to 11,418.22, but it recovered slightly in the final minutes of the trading day, closing with a total drop of 696.97 points, CNA reported.

The electronics sector did even worse than the stock market average, losing 5.99 percent, as many of Taiwan’s world-class electronics manufacturers have production units in China which are being affected by the virus outbreak there. Several companies have asked their staff to work from home and not to return to China from Taiwan now that the Lunar New Year holiday has ended.
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