TAIPEI, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Index compiler FTSE kept its classification for Taiwan at advanced emerging market status but the Taiwan stock exchange would study plans to improve the island's investment environment, the exchange said on Thursday.
Taiwan has been on the FTSE Watch List for possible promotion since 2004 and a move to developed market status would have placed Taiwan on par with other regional peers such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan.
The stock exchange said in a statement that Taiwan will remain on the watch list to be upgraded and it still lacks in areas such as a free and well-developed foreign exchange market and a better process for off-exchange transactions.
However, the exchange said it would continue to improve the island's investment environment to play catch-up with other rivals in the developed markets. The exchange did not say when FTSE will review the status again.
The news came after the Taipei's financial markets closed on Thursday. Taiwan's main TAIEX share index rose 0.5 percent to a 14-month closing high, while the Taiwan dollar rose to a more than three-month high. (Reporting by Baker Li, Editing by Simon Jessop)