Tech Shares May Again Boost Taiwan Stocks

(RTTNews) - The Taiwan stock market moved back to the upside on Thursday, one session after ending the three-day winning streak in which it had rallied more than 810 points or 3.9 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now sits just above the 22,040-point plateau and it's looking at a firm lead for Friday's trade.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism for the outlook for both the economy and for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were sharply higher and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion - although there may be profit taking as the day progresses.

The TSE finished sharply higher on Thursday following gains from the technology and plastics companies, while the financials were also mostly in the green.

For the day, the index surged 363.85 points or 1.68 percent to finish at the daily high of 22,042.69 after moving as low as 21,656.66.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial and Fubon Financial both collected 2.53 percent, while Mega Financial fell 0.38 percent, CTBC Financial slid 0.30 percent, First Financial perked 0.18 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company accelerated 2.02 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation dipped 0.19 percent, Hon Hai Precision strengthened 1.44 percent, Largan Precision soared 3.99 percent, Catcher Technology shed 0.42 percent, MediaTek climbed 1.36 percent, Delta Electronics spiked 3.03 percent, Novatek Microelectronics improved 1.30 percent, Formosa Plastics gained 0.62 percent, Nan Ya Plastics jumped 1.90 percent, Asia Cement rose 0.343 percent and E Sun Financial was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened solidly higher and remained firmly in the green throughout the session.

The Dow surged 522.09 points or 1.26 percent to finish at 42,025.19, while the NASDAQ rallied 440.68 points or 2.51 percent to end at 18,013.98 and the S&P 500 advanced 95.38 points or 1.70 percent to close at 5,713.64.

The rally on Wall Street came as traders continued to digest the Federal Reserve's decision on Wednesday to slash interest rates by half of a percentage point.

Fed officials also forecast continued rate cuts over the coming months and into next year, generating optimism the central bank will be able to engineer a soft landing for the economy.

Adding to the optimism about the economy, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell to a nearly four-month low last week.

Oil prices moved higher on Thursday with rising tensions in the Middle East raising possibility of disruptions in supply. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended up by $1.04 or 1.5 percent at $71.55 a barrel.