Taiwan Stock Market May Extend Monday's Gains

(RTTNews) - The Taiwan stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last five trading days since the end of the five-day losing streak in which it had plunged more than 740 points or 4.5 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just above the 16,380-point plateau and it may see additional support on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic after heavy selling in the previous week. The European and U.S. markets finished mostly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The TSE finished barely higher on Monday as gains from the financial and cement companies were offset by weak ness from the plastic and technology companies.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial and Delta Electronics both added 0.44 percent, while Mega Financial dipped 0.28 percent, CTBC Financial spiked 2.14 percent, First Financial perked 0.19 percent, Fubon Financial climbed 1.12 percent, E Sun Financial collected 1.02 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company fell 0.37 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation slid 0.34 percent, Catcher Technology rallied 1.50 percent, MediaTek sank 0.74 percent, Novatek Microelectronics retreated 1,17 percent, Formosa Plastics was down 0.25 percent, Nan Ya Plastics eased 0.15 percent, Asia Cement jumped 1.53 percent, Taiwan Cement improved 0.71 percent, China Steel lost 0.37 percent and Hon Hai Precision and Largan Precision were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mostly positive as the major averages opened mixed on Monday, slumped midday but recovered late, although the Dow still finished in the red.

The Dow shed 36.97 points or 0.11 percent to finish at 34,463.69, while the NASDAQ jumped 206.81 points or 1.56 percent to end at 13,497.59 and the S&P 500 gained 30.06 points or 0.69 percent to close at 4,399.77.

The spike by the NASDAQ came as traders picked up tech stocks at reduced levels following recent weakness, with the index bouncing off its lowest closing level in two months.

Cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks (PANW) helped to fuel the tech rally after reporting standout gains, while Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) weighed on the Dow.

Traders continued to look ahead to the economic summit in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where major central bankers are congregating later in the week to deliberate on monetary policy.

Crude oil prices fell on Monday, weighed down by concerns about the outlook for energy demand, although the extension of production cuts by OPEC helped limit the downside. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September fell $0.53 or 0.7 percent at $80.72 a barrel. WTI Crude futures for October settled at $80.12 a barrel, down $0.54 or 0.7 percent.

Closer to home, Taiwan will release jobless figures for July. The unemployment rate is expected to rise to 3.5 percent from 3.45 percent in June.