The Taiwan stock market on Tuesday snapped the two-day winning streak in which it had jumped almost 400 points or 1.8 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just beneath the 22,680-point plateau although it's expected to bounce higher again on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The TSE finished sharply lower on Tuesday following losses from the technology and plastics companies, while the financial sector was mixed.
For the day, the index slumped 269.61 points or 1.17 percent to finish at 22,678.76 after trading between 22,645.13 and 22,832.11.
Among the actives, Cathay Financial collected 0.15 percent, while Mega Financial slid 0.50 percent, CTBC Financial perked 0.16 percent, First Financial sank 0.72 percent, Fubon Financial lost 0.44 percent, E Sun Financial weakened 1.26 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company tumbled 1.94 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation climbed 1.11 percent, Hon Hai Precision plunged 3.80 percent, Largan Precision rallied 2.04 percent, Catcher Technology tumbled 1.75 percent, Delta Electronics slumped 1.52 percent, Novatek Microelectronics declined 1.53 percent, Formosa Plastics fell 0.23 percent, Nan Ya Plastics shed 0.62 percent, Asia Cement retreated 1.25 percent and MediaTek was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened mixed on Tuesday but trended higher throughout the day and all finished in the green.
The Dow climbed 123.74 points or 0.28 percent to finish at a record 44,860.31, while the NASDAQ jumped 119.46 points or 0.63 percent to close at 19,174.30 and the S&P 500 improved 34.28 points or 0.57 percent to end at 6,021.63, also a record.
The higher close by the major averages came as the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting revealed officials believe it will be appropriate to "gradually" lower interest rates.
The minutes said officials feel a gradual approach to lowering rates to a more neutral stance will be appropriate if economic data come in "about as expected, with inflation continuing to move down sustainably to 2 percent and the economy remaining near maximum employment."
Oil prices drifted lower on Tuesday following reports Israel and Hezbollah are closer to reaching a cease-fire agreement within the next few days. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January closed down $0.17 at $68.77 a barrel.
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