Daily Market Movers — Saturday, July 25, 2026

Taiwan's benchmark TAIEX index closed at 43,654.84 on July 24, 2026, down 1,195.97 points from the previous session, as the market priced in geopolitical risk ahead of the Han Kuang 42 live-fire drills starting August 5. The index had traded as high as 47,293.10 on July 1, a 7.7% peak-to-trough decline over 23 trading days. Defense stocks have decoupled from the broader sell-off. Han Xiang (2634-TW) rose 18.6% between July 1 and July 14, closing at NT$67.10 on July 14, while the TAIEX fell 2.3% over the same period. Trading volume in Han Xiang hit 139,300 contracts on July 14, the highest among defense-related stocks. Six defense names hit the daily 10% limit-up on July 21: Han Xiang, IET-KY, Pao Yi, Ho Cheng, Chengtian, and Shin Shin, according to Ctee data. The defense budget gives the sector structural support. Taiwan's 2026 defense allocation is an estimated $32.4 billion, a 17% compound annual growth rate from 2022 to 2026, per GlobalData. The Legislative Yuan is reviewing the Unmanned Vehicle Procurement Special Act, which authorizes up to NT$210 billion ($6.5 billion) in special budget appropriations from August 2026 through 2031 for drone and unmanned vessel acquisitions. Foreign investors held net short positions of 75,198 contracts in TAIEX futures as of July 23, while three major institutional investors bought a combined NT$16.49 billion net in the cash market that same day. Foreign and local institutions have bought Han Xiang for three straight days, totaling 24,200 contracts through July 21. The USD/TWD rate traded between 31.837 and 32.394 over the 30 days ending July 25, with the dollar up 1.71% against the New Taiwan dollar over the prior six months. The TAIEX August futures contract settled at 44,930 on July 23, a 79.19-point premium to the spot index. Futures traders expect stabilization after the initial drill-related volatility. Taiwan's real GDP growth is forecast at 5.2% for 2026, the highest among advanced Asian economies, according to DBS research. Government debt sits at about 30% of GDP, leaving room for higher defense spending without crowding out private investment. The ICT sector, roughly 90% of Taiwan's total economic growth, stays largely insulated from cross-strait tensions thanks to global AI-driven demand.

Top Gainers Analysis

Typhoon Hongxia is tracking west-northwest at 20 km/h. If it holds that speed and heading, landfall falls between 22:00 CST tonight and 02:00 CST tomorrow, within 50 km of Shanwei, Guangdong, with central pressure at or below 970 hPa and sustained winds of at least 33 m/s. The National Meteorological Center's 06:00 CST landfall report tomorrow will confirm or falsify this. For the heatwave: if Chongqing's 14:00 CST temperature tops 40.0°C today, the yellow high-temperature warning gets upgraded to orange by 18:00 CST. That upgrade is binary and observable.

Biggest Losers

Notable Losers

Global robotics revenue reached $88.27 billion in 2026, up from $73.64 billion in 2025, per Mordor Intelligence. China's major robot enterprises posted $13.26 billion in operating revenue for the first five months of 2026 alone, a 26.9% year-on-year increase, per CGTN reporting on official ministry data. The World Robot Conference (WRC), opening August 19 in Beijing, will host over 300 exhibitors, a 36% rise from 2025, with debut products up 21% to more than 150. China now accounts for 90% of global humanoid robot shipments, per People's Daily, citing Chinese Institute of Electronics president Xu Xiaolan. First-quarter 2026 humanoid exports surged 210% year-on-year. The industrial robotics market still holds the largest global segment, 71.04% of 2025 revenue, but collaborative robots are growing at a 25.64% CAGR through 2031, per Mordor Intelligence. IDC forecasts the global smart robotics hardware market will approach $300 billion in 2026, with China's embodied intelligence segment alone topping $11 billion. Chinese service and consumer robot makers account for over 85% of worldwide shipments, per IDC. The global robotics market is projected to reach $218.56 billion by 2031, a 19.86% CAGR; Asia-Pacific keeps volume leadership, but the Middle East shows the fastest adoption growth, per the same Mordor Intelligence report. WRC offline attendance grew from 50,000 in 2015 to 271,000, while online participation expanded from 65,000 to 52 million over the same period, per People's Daily. The conference will feature nearly 30 international organizations, including UNIDO and IFR, with international speakers making up 30% of the main forum. China has been the world's largest industrial robot market for 13 consecutive years, with domestic brands now above 50% of the home market.

What to Watch

• Using AutoHotkey to Trigger Different Actions Based on Press Count
• AutoHotkey allows you to create a single hotkey that performs different actions depending on how many times you press it within a specific time window. This is commonly used for single, double, and triple-click detection, similar to how Bluetooth headset buttons work-
• Core Concept
• The fundamental approach is to:
• Count each press of the hotkey