Higher Open Called For Taiwan Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Taiwan stock market has climbed higher in four straight sessions, advancing more than 340 points or 2 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now sits just above the 17,890-point plateau and it's expected to extend its gains again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic as traders look to add window dressing ahead of the year's end. The European and U.S. markets were slightly higher and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.

The TSE finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares and technology stocks.

For the day, the index improved 139.77 points or 0.79 percent to finish at 17,891.50 after trading between 17,766.73 and 17,897.16.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial added 0.55 percent, while Mega Financial collected 0.52 percent, CTBC Financial rose 0.36 percent, First Financial improved 0.74 percent, Fubon Financial gained 0.47 percent, E Sun Financial increased 0.78 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company climbed 1.02 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation skyrocketed 5.31 percent, Hon Hai Precision shed 0.48 percent, Largan Precision jumped 1.81 percent, Catcher Technology fell 0.26 percent, MediaTek soared 4.00 percent, Delta Electronics advanced 0.81 percent, Novatek Microelectronics perked 0.20 percent, Formosa Plastics rallied 1.02 percent, Taiwan Cement gathered 0.72 percent and China Steel, Nan Ya Plastics and Asia Cement were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mildly positive as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday, slipped in and out of the red before finishing with modest gains.

The Dow climbed 111.19 points or 0.30 percent to finish at a record 37,656.52, while the NASDAQ added 24.60 points or 0.16 percent to close at 15,099.18 and the S&P 500 rose 6.83 points or 0.14 percent to end at 4,781.58.

The uptick by stocks came as treasury yields moved notably lower over the course of the session, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note falling to its lowest level in five months.

Treasury yields saw further downside after the Treasury Department revealed this month's auction of $58 billion worth of five-year notes attracted average demand.

The decrease in treasury yields has added to optimism about the outlook for interest rates, generating renewed buying interest on Wall Street.

Oil prices fell Wednesday on reports that shipping companies have resumed travel via the Suez Canal and Red Sea again after a geopolitical pause. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February sank $1.46 or 1.9 percent at $74.11 a barrel.