Can you short below the reference price in Taiwan? Current rule & exceptions
Last updated: 2026-10-17
Yes, generally — since 2013-09-23, the TWSE relaxed the old "no short selling below the reference price" rule for margin-eligible stocks. The one exception: if the stock closed at limit-down the previous trading day, the restriction re-applies that day. Not investment advice.
What "reference price" (平盤) means
"平盤" (the reference price) is the previous trading day's closing price. "Below the reference price" (平盤下 / 跌破平盤) means placing a sell order at a price lower than that closing price. The rule in question historically restricted short sales — both margin short selling (融券賣出) and securities-lending short sales (借券賣出) — from being placed at prices below this reference level.
The current rule: relaxed since 2013
Since 2013-09-23, the TWSE has allowed margin short sales and securities-lending short sales on eligible stocks to be placed below the reference price — the old blanket ban no longer applies in normal conditions. This is a common source of outdated information: news coverage of temporary, emergency-only short-selling curbs (imposed during specific market-stress episodes and later lifted) is sometimes mistaken for the everyday standing rule, which has in fact been the more permissive one since 2013.
The exception: previous-day limit-down
If a stock's previous trading day closed at the daily lower price limit (跌停) — or had no closing trade but its lowest ask at the close was at the limit-down price — the below-reference-price restriction re-applies to that stock for the current trading day. This is a targeted anti-pile-on measure for stocks already under acute selling pressure, not a market-wide rule.
Who is fully exempt: ETFs, and broker/futures firm hedging
Index ETFs, and margin/securities-lending short sales by securities and futures firms for their own business hedging needs, are exempt from both the below-reference-price restriction and the limit-down exception entirely — they can be shorted below the reference price even on a day the underlying was at limit-down the day before.
How to check which stocks can be shorted below the reference price today
Use the Taiwan Stock Exchange's own daily list, 平盤下得融(借)券賣出之證券名單 ("securities that may be margin-shorted or lending-sold below the reference price", Chinese page). Pick a data date to see that day's list; it can be downloaded as CSV. TWSE notes the data has been published since 2013-09-23 — the same day the rule was relaxed. It covers TWSE-listed securities.
Scope: only stocks eligible for margin trading
This entire rule set only applies to stocks the exchange has designated as eligible for margin financing and securities lending (信用交易/融資融券資格股票) in the first place — TWSE publishes the current list. Stocks not on that list cannot be margin-shorted at all, which makes the reference-price rule moot for them.
FAQ
Can you short below the reference price, in one sentence?
Generally yes, since 2013-09-23, for margin-eligible stocks — with one exception: if the stock closed at limit-down the previous day, the restriction re-applies that day.
What is the "reference price" (平盤)?
The previous trading day's closing price. "Below the reference price" means placing a short-sell order at a lower price than that.
When exactly can't you short below the reference price?
When the stock closed at the daily lower price limit (limit-down) the previous trading day — or had no trade but its lowest ask at the close was at limit-down. The restriction applies only to that stock, only that day.
Does this restriction apply to ETFs?
No. Index ETFs are fully exempt from both the below-reference-price restriction and the limit-down exception.
When did this rule take effect?
The current, more permissive version has been in effect since 2013-09-23. Temporary, emergency-only full short-selling curbs have been imposed during specific market-stress episodes and later lifted — those are separate, one-off measures, not this standing rule.
Does this rule apply to all stocks?
No — only stocks the exchange has designated as eligible for margin financing and securities lending. Stocks outside that list cannot be margin-shorted at all.
Where can I look up which stocks can be shorted below the reference price?
On the Taiwan Stock Exchange's daily list 平盤下得融(借)券賣出之證券名單 (www.twse.com.tw/zh/trading/margin/twt92u.html, Chinese page): pick a data date to see that day's list, downloadable as CSV. TWSE notes the data has been published since 2013-09-23.
Not investment advice. This is a factual summary of TWSE's short-sale price-restriction rule for margin-eligible stocks, not a recommendation about when or whether to short. Source: Taiwan Stock Exchange.