Taiwan's share prices closed lower for the third consecutive day on light trading volume Thursday amid fears of an influenza A(H1N1) epidemic, as the number of new infections in the country continued to increase. The weighted index, the market's key barometer, dropped 28.46 points, or 0.42 percent, to close at 6,690.75. The local bourse opened at 6,678.24 and fluctuated between 6,753.73 and 6,658.73 during the day's trading session. A total of 3.01 billion shares changed hands on thin market turnover of NT$78.63 billion (US$2.39 billion). Six of the eight major stock categories lost ground, with textile stocks dropping the most at 1.7 percent. Foodstuff issues fell 1.1 percent, banking and financial issues lost 1 percent, plastics and chemicals stocks were down 0.9 percent, cement shares shed 0.6 percent, and machinery and electronics stocks declined 0.1 percent. The other two major stock categories gained ground, with paper and pulp issues adding 0.8 percent and construction stocks rising 0.1 percent. Losers outnumbered gainers 1,361 to 834, with 228 stocks remaining unchanged. Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of NT$1.60 billion worth of shares. Following their previous gains, biological technology issues fell Thursday under pressure from profit taking, triggered by reports of increasing A(H1N1) influenza infections over the past few days. 