The Taiwan stock market has experienced declines for two consecutive sessions, dropping by more than 650 points or 2.8 percent in total. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now stands just above the 22,510-point level, but there is hope for stabilization as the new week begins.
Globally, the outlook for Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, buoyed by an improved forecast for interest rates. While European markets experienced losses, U.S. markets closed higher, suggesting that Asian markets might follow the trend set by the U.S.
On Friday, the TSE posted significant losses due to declines in financial shares, technology stocks, as well as companies in the plastics and cement sectors. The index fell by 422.00 points or 1.84 percent, closing at the day's low of 22,510.25 after reaching a high of 22,845.59.
Notably, in the financial sector, Cathay Financial fell by 0.59 percent, Mega Financial decreased by 0.13 percent, while CTBC Financial rose slightly by 0.16 percent. Other losses included First Financial down by 0.92 percent, Fubon Financial by 0.55 percent, and E Sun Financial by 0.56 percent. In the technology sphere, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company dropped by 3.27 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation fell by 1.51 percent, and Largan Precision declined by 1.37 percent. Meanwhile, Catcher Technology slipped by 0.28 percent, MediaTek was down by 2.11 percent, and Delta Electronics decreased by 1.08 percent. Novatek Microelectronics provided a glimmer of positivity with a rise of 0.31 percent, whereas Formosa Plastics and Nan Ya Plastics fell sharply by 4.05 percent and 5.62 percent, respectively. Asia Cement edged down by 0.24 percent, with Hon Hai Precision remaining unchanged.
Turning to Wall Street, the outlook is positive. Although the major indices opened lower on Friday, they quickly rebounded and remained positive throughout the session. The Dow surged by 498.06 points or 1.18 percent to close at 42,840.26, the NASDAQ increased by 199.80 points or 1.03 percent to settle at 19,572.60, and the S&P 500 climbed by 63.77 points or 1.09 percent, ending at 5,930.85.
Over the week, however, the Dow fell by 2.3 percent, the S&P 500 decreased by 2.0 percent, and the NASDAQ declined by 1.8 percent. The rally was spurred by the U.S. Commerce Department's report on personal consumption expenditures (PCE), which showed slower growth than anticipated. This data, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure for consumer price inflation, prompted traders to buy stocks at lower prices following mid-week setbacks.
Oil prices saw an uptick on Friday as the dollar weakened from two-year highs, helped by softer PCE readings which reduced concerns over potential interest rate cuts. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures rose by $0.08, or approximately 0.1 percent, to $69.46 a barrel, despite a weekly decrease of 2.5 percent.
Looking closer to the region, Taiwan is set to release its November figures for industrial production and unemployment later today. Previously, in October, industrial output had risen by 8.85 percent year-on-year, and the unemployment rate stood at 3.38 percent.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company -
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