Taiwan Stock Market Tipped To Open In The Red

The Taiwan stock market has tracked higher in six straight sessions, advancing more than 710 points or 4.6 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just beneath the 16,190-point plateau although investors figure to lock in gains on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets remains soft on increasing concerns over the Republican-manufactured U.S. debt ceiling confrontation. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The TSE finished slightly higher again on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, technology stocks and cement companies.

For the day, the index perked 7.14 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 16,188.03 after trading between 16,121.45 and 16,239.50.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial sank 0.78 percent, while CTBC Financial perked 0.20 percent, First Financial collected 0.54 percent, Fubon Financial lost 0.49 percent, E Sun Financial fell 0.38 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company eased 0.19 percent, Hon Hai Precision shed 0.49 percent, Catcher Technology skidded 1.05 percent, MediaTek strengthened 1.56 percent, Delta Electronics dropped 0.98 percent, Novatek Microelectronics rose 0.25 percent, Asia Cement improved 0.34 percent, Taiwan Cement retreated 0.92 percent, China Steel slumped 0.33 percent and United Microelectronics Corporation, Largan Precision, Mega Financial, Formosa Plastics and Nan Ya Plastics were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street suggests consolidation as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday and spent much of the day hugging the line before slumping in the afternoon.

The Dow tumbled 231.07 points or 0.69 percent to finish at 33,055.51, while the NASDAQ sank 160.53 points or 1.26 percent to end at 12,560.25 and the S&P 500 dropped 47.05 points or 1.12 percent to close at 4,145.58.

The markets continue to be weighed by the debt ceiling negotiations. U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said they held productive talks but there was no agreement on how to raise the government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling.

In economic news, the S&P Global US Composite PMI accelerated to its fastest pace in more than a year, while the Commerce Department said new home sales surprised much higher to the upside.

Crude oil futures advanced on speculation that OPEC might consider another production cut next month, and on a warning from Saudi Arabia’s energy minister that oil prices will stop declining. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July rose $0.86 or 1.2 percent at $72.91 a barrel.