The Taiwan stock market has moved higher in back-to-back trading days, advancing more than 110 points or 1.1 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just beneath the 9,780-point plateau although investors figure to cash in on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed and flat ahead of OPEC and G20 meetings later this week. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The TSE finished slightly higher on Tuesday following a mixed performance from the technology stocks, while the financials and cement companies weighed.
For the day, the index added 13.26 points or 0.14 percent to finish at 9,778.62 after trading between 9,688.74 and 9,781.40 on turnover of 99.50 billion Taiwan dollars.
Among the actives, Cathay Financial retreated 1.01 percent, while Fubon Financial declined 1.60 percent, CTBC Financial dipped 0.24 percent, Mega Financial fell 0.76 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company added 0.45 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation spiked 2.17 percent, Catcher Technology tumbled 2.22 percent, AsusTek Computer declined 1.36 percent, Hon Hai Precision shed 0.42 percent, Largan Precision climbed 1.01 percent, AU Optronics advanced 0.79 percent, Formosa Plastics skidded 1.98 percent, Asia Cement lost 2.27 percent, Taiwan Cement plummeted 5.23 percent, Nan Ya Plastics dropped 1.45 percent and Chunghwa Telecom was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as stocks shook off a lower open on Tuesday, with bargain hunters lifting the major averages back into the green.
The Dow added 108.49 points or 0.44 percent to end at 24,748.73, while the NASDAQ gained 0.85 points or 0.01 percent to 7,082.70 and the S&P was up 8.75 points or 0.33 percent to 2,682.20.
The initial pullback on Wall Street reflected renewed skepticism about a trade deal between the U.S. and China after President Donald Trump said it was "highly unlikely" he would delay an increase in tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods from 10 percent to 25 percent.
Trump also said the U.S. could slap 10 percent tariffs on iPhones and laptops imported from China, contributing to an early sell-off by shares of Apple (AAPL). Trump is due to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a G20 summit in Argentina later this week.
In economic news, the Conference Board noted a bigger than expected fall in consumer confidence in November.
Crude oil prices were down slightly on Tuesday ahead of the forthcoming OPEC meet in Vienna. Crude oil futures for January ended down $0.07 or 0.1 percent at $51.56 a barrel, well off the session's low of $50.31.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Market Analysis