AI storm rises, new financial landscape: what did foreign investors buy amid the Taiwan stock market crash? Nanya Technology and Largan Precision lead; 16 potential rebound stocks emerge Nanya Technology, Largan Precision and other stocks close higher, attract contrarian foreign buying; outlook promising * 2026.11.07 * 03:00 * Commercial Times, Lu Shumei On the 6th, Taiwan stocks staged a 'Black Friday' a week early, plunging 3,737 points intraday in an epic collapse. Taiwan index futures were repeatedly driven limit-down intraday, and more than 500 stocks hit limit-down in the morning. As the Presidential Office and Executive Yuan spoke out, bargain-hunting buyers began to pour in intraday, lifting many stocks to 'turn around from the bottom' and close higher. Combined with contrarian foreign net buying, a total of 16 stocks including Nanya Technology, Largan Precision, Powertech, and PharmaEssentia fought their way out. They are expected to serve as rebound vanguards as the market is poised to bottom and stabilize under the National Stabilization Fund and Financial Supervisory Commission's declaration of support. This year, Taiwan stocks, which have shone in global stock markets, were hit as the US Democratic Party's push for AI data centers drove competition for water and electricity, pushing up residential electricity prices. This triggered market concerns that future AI plant construction would face strict scrutiny and infrastructure could be delayed, causing Taiwan's AI supply chain to stage a domino-style selloff recently. The index suffered a cliff-edge plunge on the 6th, falling 5,510 points for the week. However, as the government declared support, Taiwan stocks returned to the annual moving average, and bulls showed signs of counterattack. Tang Qiguo, senior associate in the research department at E.Sun Securities Investment Consulting, believes the short term is in a phase of foreign investor adjustment and margin liquidation. Margin balances for listed and OTC stocks fell by more than NT$50 billion on the 6th, offering a chance to stabilize; if stock prices stop making new lows, it would be more meaningful as a turnover of holdings. Foreign investors have sold a net NT$2.89 trillion so far this year, approaching the NT$3 trillion mark, and continued to sell a net NT$91.1 billion on the 6th. However, screening for stocks that closed higher and had foreign net buying of more than NT$400 million yielded 16 stocks, including Nanya Technology, Largan Precision, Powertech, PharmaEssentia, LandMark Optoelectronics, Innolux, Winbond Electronics, and Visual Photonics Epitaxy. Among them, Nanya Technology and Largan Precision each received nearly NT$1.9 billion and NT$1.6 billion in foreign buying on the day. Chunghwa Telecom, the veteran leader among telecom operators, bucked the trend on the 6th to close at NT$163.5, up 1.24%, with market capitalization surging to NT$1.27 trillion, both hitting record highs. Institutional investors noted that Chunghwa Telecom had been relatively stable while AI stocks surged. During this stock market crash it benefited from steady profit growth and a high dividend yield as a protective umbrella, and it is also a heavyweight indicator of policy support, so it avoided the crash. KGI Securities Investment Consulting analyzed that PharmaEssentia's October revenue was NT$2.84 billion, up 7.6% month-on-month and 102% year-on-year, setting a new monthly high. The revenue growth momentum came from the 'twin-engine' explosion of its rare blood disease drug Ropeg. In addition to stable penetration of the drug in the US and Japan for its original indication, polycythemia vera (PV), this year it successfully expanded into the essential thrombocythemia (ET) market. Recently, new drug approvals for Ropeg in treating ET have been obtained successively in Taiwan, the US, Japan, and China; full ramp-up began this month, and full-year profit is estimated to have a chance to challenge earning the equivalent of two times its share capital. Institutional investors believe that although the market is volatile in the short term, they remain optimistic that Visual Photonics Epitaxy's ramp-up progress for optical communication products related to AI connectivity applications will remain unchanged. According to observations, Visual Photonics Epitaxy will accelerate capacity conversion to meet strong demand for AI optical communication components; customers providing more consignment/toll-processing substrates will help improve the company's profit margin. (See related news on A3)

PharmaEssentia's blood cancer drug ropeginterferon alfa-2b (Ropeg) has won approval for essential thrombocythemia (ET) in Taiwan, Japan, the US, and China. The ET indication remains unapproved in Europe. Ropeg is already approved for polycythemia vera (PV) in about 50 countries, including the EU, where it was cleared in 2019. Both conditions are chronic blood cancers that raise the risk of blood clots. In the global Phase III SURPASS-ET trial, Ropeg produced a significantly higher durable clinical response rate than anagrelide, the established therapy. Under a 2009 licensing deal, Austria-based AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals handles Ropeg's regulatory submissions and commercialisation in Europe. PharmaEssentia manufactures the drug and says it supports AOP's regulatory work.

Safe haven for funds shifts to biotech stocks! Five major engines help 20 stocks including PharmaEssentia and Bora chase year-end rally 2026.11.01 03:00 Commercial Times, Du Huirong Benefiting from five engines firing together - international licensing, drug approvals, clinical trial unblinding, revenue growth and capacity expansion - biotech stocks have recently become a safe haven for funds. Institutional investors are bullish that 20 stocks, including PharmaEssentia, Bora Pharmaceuticals, Lotus Pharmaceuticals, TLC-KY, Lin BioScience, TAHO Pharmaceuticals and SciVision Biotech, may lead the sector in pursuing a year-end rally. Institutional investors noted that the global drug patent cliff is taking effect, and international pharmaceutical companies are accelerating their search for new drug licensing and contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) cooperation. Taiwan's biotech industry is welcoming new opportunities; in particular, companies with substantive revenue, international licensing and new drug approval themes are expected to become new focal points for capital allocation. In terms of revenue, PharmaEssentia's Ropeg for essential thrombocythemia (ET) has successively obtained drug approvals in Taiwan, the United States, Japan and China; September revenue was NT$2.64 billion, up 100% year on year, a record high. Bora Pharmaceuticals benefited from strong CDMO orders in North America, with September revenue of NT$2.33 billion, up 35.13% year on year. Lotus Pharmaceuticals saw overseas market and acquisition benefits materialize, with September revenue of NT$2.766 billion, up 128% year on year. The three benchmark stocks are expected to see operating growth next year. In international licensing, TLC-KY is the most representative: its TLC599 was licensed to Japan's Zeria Pharmaceutical for up to US$203 million; TLC590 successfully unblinded in Phase III clinical trials, and licensing negotiations in Europe and the United States are accelerating, with the goal of turning profitable next year. The Phase II data for BRIM Biotechnology's ophthalmic new drug BRM424 are positive; HanKang-KY's HCB303 received FDA Phase I clinical trial clearance; TaiMed Biologics' next-generation long-acting HIV antibody continues to advance - all have licensing potential. In terms of drug approvals and clinical themes, Lin BioScience's subsidiary Belite Bio's rare eye disease new drug Tinlarebant has entered drug approval review in the United States and Japan; TAHO Pharmaceuticals' anti-thrombotic oral dissolving film BEQIA is under US drug approval review, but patent litigation should be noted; Handa Pharmaceuticals' anticancer drug HND-039 obtained FDA final marketing approval. Anji's AJ201 will initiate a US Phase III clinical trial; Hua An's diabetic foot ulcer new drug is advancing Taiwan-US Phase III patient enrollment; Gwo Yih*'s L606 China Phase III has launched, and L608 has been approved to conduct a US Phase II clinical trial. Capacity expansion and commercialization are another group worth watching. These include EirGenix's biosimilar Herwenda expanding into the European market and its new Zhubei plant being inaugurated; Aether Medical's Urocross completing the first commercial clinical procedure in the United States; and Pegavision expanding in Japan and Europe.