On Monday, the Taiwan stock market concluded its five-day winning streak, during which it gained almost 775 points or 3.2 percent. Currently, the Taiwan Stock Exchange is positioned slightly above the 23,190-point mark and could face further declines on Tuesday.
The outlook for Asian markets is subdued as year-end profit-taking is anticipated, particularly among technology stocks. This follows the downward trends seen in European and U.S. markets, suggesting a similar opening for Asian exchanges.
On Monday, the TSE experienced a modest decrease, influenced by declines in the financial and plastics sectors, along with mixed results in technology stocks.
The index dropped 85.48 points, or 0.37 percent, closing at 23,190.20, with trading ranging between 23,159.70 and 23,331.67.
Key movements included Cathay Financial's decrease of 0.14 percent, Mega Financial's 0.13 percent drop, First Financial's 0.18 percent reduction, and E Sun Financial's 0.55 percent loss. United Microelectronics Corporation slipped 1.15 percent, Hon Hai Precision fell 0.80 percent, while Largan Precision edged up 0.38 percent and Catcher Technology advanced 0.78 percent. MediaTek declined by 0.70 percent, Delta Electronics gained 0.70 percent, Novatek Microelectronics decreased 0.40 percent, Formosa Plastics tumbled 4.05 percent, Nan Ya Plastics decreased 2.90 percent, and Asia Cement fell 0.61 percent. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Fubon Financial, and CTBC Financial remained unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is lackluster, with the major averages opening lower on Monday and remaining in negative territory throughout the session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 418.48 points, or 0.97 percent, closing at 42,573.73. The NASDAQ dropped 235.25 points, or 1.19 percent, to end at 19,486.79, while the S&P 500 decreased by 63.90 points, or 1.07 percent, finishing at 5,906.94.
Wall Street's weakness continued due to end-of-year profit-taking, extending the sell-off seen last Friday. Despite this, major indices remain set for solid 2024 returns, with the tech-heavy NASDAQ up nearly 30 percent for the year.
Technology stocks rebounded from their lowest points but still concluded the day significantly down. A marked weakness was observed in semiconductor stocks, indicated by the 1.9 percent decline in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
The sell-off on Wall Street may have been intensified by lower-than-average trading volumes, as many traders were absent ahead of the New Year's Day holiday on Wednesday.
Oil prices climbed to a five-week high on Monday, benefiting from recent data indicating a larger-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories. Additionally, expectations of increased demand from China contributed to the rise in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude futures for February increased by 0.6 percent, reaching $70.99 per barrel.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company -
www.instaforex.com
