The Taiwan stock market has finished lower in three straight sessions, sinking more than 660 points, or 2.5 percent, during that span. The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) now sits just above the 25,580-point plateau, although it may find traction on Monday amid an upbeat global forecast for Asian markets driven by an improved outlook for interest rates.
Following losses from financial shares, technology stocks, and plastics companies, the TSE finished sharply lower on Friday. The index plummeted 443.53 points, or 1.70 percent, to close at 25,580.32 after trading between 25,469.04 and 25,998.28.
Among the active stocks, Cathay Financial dropped 0.91 percent, First Financial sank 0.84 percent, and E Sun Financial shed 0.45 percent. Meanwhile, Mega Financial edged up 0.12 percent, and CTBC Financial remained unchanged. In the technology sector, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company retreated 1.52 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation rallied 1.24 percent, and Hon Hai Precision plunged 4.57 percent.
Other notable movements included Largan Precision declining 1.28 percent, Catcher Technology tumbling 1.60 percent, MediaTek tanking 2.60 percent, Delta Electronics plummeting 4.07 percent, and Novatek Microelectronics slumping 1.36 percent. In the plastics sector, Formosa Plastics stumbled 1.29 percent, and Nan Ya Plastics crashed 3.18 percent. On a positive note, Asia Cement rose 0.13 percent.
The lead from Wall Street was positive as major averages opened higher on Friday and spent most of the day in the green. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 299.97 points, or 0.65 percent, to finish at 46,247.29. The NASDAQ advanced 99.37 points, or 0.44 percent, closing at 22,484.07, while the S&P 500 gained 38.98 points, or 0.59 percent, ending at 6,643.70.
For the week, however, the NASDAQ slid 0.7 percent, the S&P 500 fell 0.3 percent, and the Dow dipped 0.2 percent.
The strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to a closely watched Commerce Department report showing that consumer prices rose in line with economist estimates in August. This data helped increase investor confidence that the Federal Reserve will continue lowering interest rates in the coming months.
In commodities, crude oil prices advanced on Friday as Russia introduced a partial ban on diesel exports until the end of 2025, restricting fuel exports. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for November delivery rose $0.59, or 0.91 percent, to $65.57 per barrel.
*The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.*
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/taiwan-stock-market-due-support-monday
