Financials push Taiwan stocks to 1-mth closing high

* Market hit fresh one-month closing high

* TSMC falls ahead of its January sales

* Tech shares gain despite dismal January export data

* UMC rises before posting January sales, Q4 earnings (Adds details and quote)

TAIPEI, Feb 10 - Taiwan stocks rose 0.70 percent on Tuesday to a one-month closing high, led by Cathay Financial <2882.TW> after some financial firms returned to profit following previous losses stemming from the global financial crisis.

The main TAIEX share index <.TWII> closed up 31.51 points at 4,526.10, its strongest close since Jan. 13, with the financial sub-index <.TFNI> 1.23 percent higher.

"Positive January results showed that the worst situation has passed for some financial companies, and their stocks pushed the market higher today," said Michael On, a managing director of Beyond Asset Management.

On expected the market to trade between 4,500-4,600 points this week.

Cathay Financial, the island's top financial holding firm, posted sales of T$1.9 billion in January, while Chinatrust <2891.TW>, Taiwan's largest credit card issuer, earned T$1.4 billion in the same month. [ID:nTP226989]

Shares of Cathay Financial and Chinatrust advanced 0.65 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively.

The electronics sub-index <.TELI> gained 0.68 percent, recouping early losses and shrugging off Taiwan's gloomy January data showing exports slumped by a record 44 percent from a year ago. [ID:nTP304982]

But Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) <2330.TW> <TSM.N>, the world's top contract chip maker, dropped 1.43 percent.

After the market was closed, TSMC said its January sales plunged 59 percent from a year ago, its worst drop since it went public. [ID:nTPU001091]

United Microelectronics Corp (UMC) <2303.TW>, the world's No. 2 contract chip maker, rose 0.12 percent after a newspaper said on Tuesday the firm would sell its 30 chip testing machines to King Yuan <2449.TW>, as it aims to outsource its chip testing work.

Minutes after the market close, UMC <UMC.N> said it posted a net loss of T$23.5 billion in the fourth quarter, well under a market forecast of T$3.31 billion in losses.

Chi Mei Optoelectronics <3009.TW>, Taiwan's No. 2 flat panel maker, rose 3.83 percent. A local newspaper said the company has officially halted planning for its 8.5 generation LCD-making plant.

However, Chi Mei's bigger rival AU Optronics <2409.TW>, Taiwan's largest flat panel maker, fell 0.36 percent, retreating from strong gains in the previous session.

Its loss came after the firm posted January sales that dropped 10 percent from a month earlier, raising concerns that positive effects from rush orders might not last long.

DRAM makers were among the big winners, with shares of Taiwan's top three DRAM firms -- Powerchip <5346.TWO>, Nanya Tech <2408.TW> and ProMOS <5387.TWO> -- all surging by their 7 percent daily limit.

Investors ignored a note by research firm iSuppli saying global DRAM revenue is seen falling by a wider-than-expected 15 percent this year as memory chip makers were hit by heavy losses in the last quarter and cut supplies radically. [ID:nSEO78724] ------------------------------------------------------------

Move on day 0.70 percent

Close on day 4,526.10

2009 intraday high 4,817.44

2009 intraday low 4,164.19

All time high 12,682.41 12 FEB 1990

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For a table of foreign trading in Taiwan stocks, double-click on [ID:nTP170358] (US$1=T$33.9)