Taiwan Stock Market May Bounce Higher Again On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The Taiwan stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last seven trading days since the end of the three-day losing streak in which it had tumbled almost 350 points or 2.2 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just above the 15,510-point plateau although it figures to open higher again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on easing concerns over the health of the financial sector. The European and U.S. markets were firmly higher and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.

The TSE finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the financial shares and plastics, while the technology stocks were mixed.

For the day, the index improved 93.48 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 15,513.45 after trading between 15,437.95 and 15,547.97.

Among the actives, Cathay Financial strengthened 1.37 percent, while Mega Financial gained 0.63 percent, CTBC Financial rose 0.24 percent, Fubon Financial collected 0.55 percent, First Financial improved 0.78 percent, E Sun Financial increased 0.84 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Hon Hai Precision both advanced 0.98 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation sank 0.75 percent, Largan Precision rallied 2.24 percent, Catcher Technology added 0.53 percent, MediaTek perked 0.13 percent, Delta Electronics jumped 1.91 percent, Novatek Microelectronics fell 0.23 percent, Formosa Plastics climbed 0.56 percent, Nan Ya Plastics was up 0.13 percent, Taiwan Cement gathered 0.41 percent and Asia Cement and China Steel were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher on Tuesday and remained solidly in the green throughout the session.

The Dow surged 316.02 points or 0.98 percent to finish at 32,560.60, while the NASDAQ spiked 184.57 points or 1.58 percent to end at 11,860.11 and the S&P 500 climbed 51.30 points or 1.30 percent to end at 4,002.87.

The extended rally on Wall Street partly reflected easing concerns about turmoil in the financial sector following recent steps taken to rescue distressed banks in the U.S. and Europe.

Positive sentiment was also generated in reaction to remarks by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who said the government is prepared to once again take action to protect bank depositors if smaller lenders are threatened.

Traders also looked ahead to the Federal Reserve's highly anticipated monetary policy announcement later today. While the recent banking turmoil led to some speculation the Fed may leave interest rates unchanged, CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating an 86.4 percent chance of a 25-basis point rate hike.

Crude oil prices climbed higher Tuesday, gaining for a second straight session amid improving risk sentiment thanks to the coordinated efforts by major central banks to rescue troubled U.S. and European lenders. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended higher by $1.69 or 2.5 percent at $69.33 a barrel.