The Taiwan stock market has ended in losses in two out of the last three trading days. The downturn followed a six-day winning streak during which the market gained over 825 points or 4.7%. Now, the Taiwan Stock Exchange is just below the 18,035-point plateau and is predicted to start Wednesday on a downward trend.
The global market forecast for Asian markets is unclear, as the FOMC's rate decision and statement is due later today. European markets ended on a positive note, while U.S markets showed a mixed performance, a trend which Asian markets are likely to echo.
The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) ended slightly down on Tuesday, with negative contributions from finance shares, tech stocks, and plastic and cement companies. On Tuesday, the Index fell by 85.00 points or 0.47%, finishing at its daily low of 18,034.63 after touching a high of 18,138.74.
Firms like Cathay Financial, Mega Financial, CTBC Financial, First Financial, and Fubon Financial showed signs of retreat, while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and United Microelectronics Corporation were among the few which made gains. The likes of MediaTek, Novatek Microelectronics, Formosa Plastics, Nan Ya Plastics, and Taiwan Cement demonstrated weak performances.
Wall Street’s influence on Taiwan was inconclusive. Major U.S averages began low on Tuesday; however, the Dow rallied to close higher. In contrast, the NASDAQ stayed below the line throughout the day, while the S&P 500 fluctuated before finishing with slight losses.
NASDAQ's pullback may have resulted from investors cashing in on the recent strength of the tech sector prior to the release of quarterly results from companies like Google parent Alphabet, Microsoft, Apple, Amazonand Meta Platforms.
Today's announcement from the Federal Reserve on monetary policy is a potential uncertainty that may have driven traders to secure profits. While the Fed is projected to maintain the current interest rates, its statement could influence future rate predictions.
In other economic developments, an unexpected rise in job openings was reported by the Labour Department for December. Furthermore, the Conference Board noted a continued increase in U.S. consumer confidence for January.
Crude oil prices saw a sharp increase on Tuesday, compensating for Monday's steep drop, following the International Monetary Fund's global growth forecast for 2024. West Texas Intermediate for March delivery surged by $1.04 or 1.4% to $77.82 a barrel.
Finally, Taiwan is set to release preliminary gross domestic product (GDP) figures for Q4 today, with forecasts indicating a yearly increase of 4.5%, up from 2.32% in the last quarter.
