Taiwan dollar edges lower in thin trade

TAIPEI, July 14 (Reuters) - The Taiwan dollar TWD=TP eased slightly on Monday in lacklustre trade, as the central bank sold U.S. dollars to keep oil trader demand for the U.S. currency in check.

The Taiwan dollar ended at T$30.404, down from Friday's close of T$30.392.

Volume on the main Taipei Forex Inc was just $526 million, the lowest so far this year and down from $779 million in the previous session.

"No dealers have been trading because there hasn't been any movement in the currency's value," a dealer at a domestic bank said.

Investors feared losing money in a stagnant market, another dealer said.

Foreign institutions sold a net T$7.134 billion ($235 million) in Taiwan stocks on Friday and have sold a net total of T$73.098 billion for the month to date.

Since the beginning of the year, the Taiwan dollar has appreciated 6.3 percent on investor hopes for economic improvements under President Ma Ying-jeou, who has pledged closer trade ties with China.

Traders said oil importers had pressured the Taiwan currency by buying U.S. dollars to pay for their overseas purchases.

But the central bank stepped in and sold U.S. dollars to make sure the currency didn't move too much, they added. The bank wants the currency to appreciate steadily.

On the smaller Cosmos exchange COSMOS1, the Taiwan dollar ended ended at T$30.404 to the U.S. dollar from the previous close of T$30.380. (Reporting by Doug Young, Ralph Jennings and Yvette Chen)