(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-08-21 10:49

Share prices on the Taiwan Stock Exchange skyrocketed Monday, with the weighted index, the market's key barometer, moving up 425.31 points to close at 8,515.6, according to news reaching Hong Kong from Taipei.

The bourse opened at 8,496.97 and fluctuated between 8,516.75 and 8,397.26 during trading. A total of 4.32 billion shares changed hands on a market turnover of 127.45 billion new Taiwan dollars (US$3.86 billion).

All eight major stock categories gained ground, with foodstuff shares moving up the most at 6.5 percent, followed by paper and pulp issues at 5.6 percent, banking and financial shares at 5.5 percent, construction issues at 5.4 percent and machinery and electronics, cement and textile stocks all at 5.2 percent, with plastics and chemicals shares at 5 percent.

Gainers outnumbered losers more than 1,000 to 105, with 72 stocks remaining unchanged.