Taiwan dollar rises on exporters, but c.bank moves

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TAIPEI, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The Taiwan dollar strengthened on Monday as exporters sold U.S. dollars for the local currency on the last day of the year, but the central bank moved to keep the local currency's rise in check.

Taiwan's currency TWD=TP reached T$32.481 to the U.S. dollar in the first hour of trade after opening at T$32.450, up from Friday's final price of T$32.499. Volume on the main Taipei Forex was US$213 million at 0200 GMT.

Exporters usually sell their U.S. dollars at the end of the month and year to meet their cash needs.

But Taiwan's central bank also bought U.S. dollars on Monday to keep the local currency in check, a dealer in Taipei said.

"The central bank hopes the local currency will strengthen, but it bought U.S. dollars to make sure it doesn't go up too fast," the dealer said.

Since the beginning of the year, the Taiwan dollar has gained 0.3 percent, although it has lost 0.7 percent since the start of December amid a generally weak stock market.

Light trade was expected on Monday due to the New Year holiday.

"We haven't seen much trading, as the markets in Taiwan are slow today," a dealer said.

Taiwan stocks , which can contribute to currency fluctuations, were up 0.64 percent on Monday in the first hour of trade, hitting a two-and-one-half week intraday high, as investors hunted for bargains and snapped up technology shares.

On the smaller Cosmos COSMOS1 exchange, the Taiwan dollar had strengthened to T$32.483 to the U.S. dollar by 0204 GMT, from the previous close of T$32.506.

(Reporting by Ralph Jennings and Argin Chang; Editing by Anne Marie Roantree)