Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. became the focal point of a sharp selloff in Taiwan equities on Aug. 18 as heavy foreign investor selling for a second straight session drove the stock below NT$70 and extended its two-day decline to 11.09%. Taiwan's weighted index opened higher and briefly regained 46,000 before reversing sharply, swinging more than 700 points intraday and closing down 548.59 points, or 1.2%, at 45,308.68 on trading value of about NT$958.4 billion, roughly $30.0 billion. Foreign investors sold 35,766 shares of Powerchip on Aug. 18 after selling 68,115 shares on Aug. 17, leaving the stock the top foreign net sell on both days and taking combined two-day selling above 100,000 shares. The National Team (government-linked funds) bought 3,756 shares on Aug. 18 and 2,573 shares on Aug. 17, deploying more than NT$470 million, or about $14.7 million, across the two sessions, but that support was small relative to foreign outflows. Market pressure has spread across memory-related names, with Macronix and Vanguard International Semiconductor also drawing state-backed buying as investors grow more cautious on a possible memory downcycle and slower recovery in mature-node foundry (older-generation chipmaking) utilization. With more than 670,000 shareholders and a widely dispersed retail base, Powerchip has been especially exposed to a feedback loop of institutional selling and stop-loss pressure. Analysts cited in the report said the next turning point will be whether foreign selling subsides, while memory pricing and demand for mature-node foundry services remain the main medium- to long-term drivers.