Additional Support Predicted For Taiwan Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Taiwan stock market has moved higher in three straight sessions, collecting almost 200 points or 1.2 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just above the 16,575-point plateau and it's likely to open in the green on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with technology stocks expected to fuel the rally. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.

The TSE finished modestly higher on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, technology stocks and cement companies.

For the day, the index jumped 139.29 points or 0.85 percent to finish at 16,576.90 after trading between 16,440.39 and 16,588.51.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial sank 0.67 percent, while CTBC Financial collected 0.64 percent, First Financial perked 0.19 percent, E Sun Financial fell 0.41 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company rallied 2.03 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation shed 0.46 percent, Largan Precision plunged 2.23 percent, Catcher Technology advanced 0.90 percent, MediaTek eased 0.15 percent, Delta Electronics lost 0.43 percent, Novatek Microelectronics added 0.65 percent, Formosa Plastics declined 0.63 percent, Asia Cement improved 0.76 percent, Taiwan Cement dipped 0.28 percent, China Steel was down 0.37 percent and Hon Hai Precision, Mega Financial, Fubon Financial and Nan Ya Plastics were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher and accelerated as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow gained 184.15 points or 0.54 percent to finish at 34,472.98, while the NASDAQ spiked 215.16 points or 1.59 percent to end at 13,721.03 and the S&P 500 added 48.46 points or 1.10 percent to close at 4,436.01.

The spike by the Nasdaq came as tech stocks rallied ahead of earnings news from Nvidia (NVDA), and the chipmaker released strong fiscal second quarter results after the close of trading.

A steep drop by bond yields also generated some buying interest, as the 10-year yield pulled back further off highest levels in well over 15 years.

In economic news, S&P noted a slowdown in the pace service sector activity and a contraction in manufacturing activity in August. Also, the Commerce Department said new home sales rebounded much more than expected in July.

Crude oil futures settled lower Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for oil demand after data showed a decline in global manufacturing activity. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended lower by $0.75 or 0.9 percent at $78.89 a barrel.