The Taiwan stock market has surged for five consecutive sessions, adding over 750 points or 3.8% during this period. Currently, the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) stands just above the 21,300-point mark, although it’s anticipated that investors may look to secure profits on Friday.
The global outlook for Asian markets suggests a trend toward consolidation, with recent gains likely to prompt profit-taking. Both European and U.S. markets experienced dips, and similar behavior is expected from Asian exchanges.
On Thursday, the TSE saw a modest rise, bolstered by gains in financial shares, technology stocks, cement companies, and plastics. Specifically, the index climbed 157.05 points or 0.74% to close at 21,304.26, trading between 21,249.88 and 21,515.52 throughout the day.
In terms of activity: Cathay Financial dropped 0.35%, Mega Financial decreased by 0.12%, while CTBC Financial rose 1.63%, and First Financial up by 0.54%. Fubon Financial edged up 0.14%, E Sun Financial advanced 1.07%, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company increased 0.24%, United Microelectronics Corporation and Hon Hai Precision both added 0.59%, and Largan Precision surged 2.21%. Conversely, Catcher Technology fell 0.43%. MediaTek soared 3.03%, Delta Electronics gained 0.31%, Novatek Microelectronics rallied 2.07%, Formosa Plastics rose 0.44%, Nan Ya Plastics improved by 1.06%, Asia Cement gained 0.33%, Taiwan Cement advanced 0.90%, and China Steel jumped 1.62%.
Wall Street saw a softer end to Thursday as major averages, which had been primarily positive, were pushed down by a late session wave of profit-taking. The Dow decreased by 38.62 points or 0.10% to 39,869.38, the NASDAQ fell 44.07 points or 0.26% to 16,698.32, and the S&P 500 dropped 11.05 points or 0.21% to 5,297.10.
Initially, Wall Street's strength continued from the previous day’s rally, driven by optimism about interest rates following unexpectedly tame consumer price inflation data. However, buying interest declined as traders moved to lock in recent gains.
In economic news, the Labor Department reported a decrease in initial jobless claims last week. Additionally, U.S. import prices rose more than anticipated in April, while industrial production remained unchanged.
Oil prices rose on Thursday, supported by recent data indicating a significant decline in U.S. crude inventories last week. Additionally, hopes for a possible interest rate cut in September contributed to the increase. Consequently, West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for June closed higher by $0.60, reaching $79.23 a barrel.