The Taiwan stock market has finished lower in two of three trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had gathered almost 30 points or 0.3 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just above the 11,005-point plateau, and it's expected to open under pressure again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly negative thanks to renewed fears of a trade way and the resulting slide in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were sharply lower, and the Asian bourses also figure to open in the red.
The TSE finished barely lower on Thursday as losses from the technology stocks were tempered by support from the financial and steel sectors.
For the day, the index eased 5.23 points or 0.05 percent to finish at 11,005.84 after moving between 10,975.33 and 11,120.20 on turnover of 147.42 billion Taiwan dollars.
Among the actives, Fubon Financial collected 0.58 percent, while Cathay Financial was unchanged, Mega Financial gained 0.20 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company shed 0.40 percent, AU Optronics skidded 1.08 percent, Hon Hai Precision added 0.43 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation picked up 0.33 percent, Largan Precision dropped 1.51 percent, China Steel advanced 0.42 percent and Taiwan Steel picked up 0.38 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is sharply lower as stocks showed a substantial move to the downside on Thursday, the modest losses in the previous session.
The Dow plunged 724.42 points or 2.93 percent to 23,957.89, while the NASDAQ lost 178.61 points or 2.43 percent to 7,166.68 and the S&P fell 68.24 points or 2.52 percent to 2,643.69.
The sell-off reflected concerns of a potential trade war after President Donald Trump announced tariffs on at least $50 billion worth of Chinese imports. Trade war concerns have recently hovered over the markets after Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
In economic news, the Labor Department noted an uptick in first-time claims for U.S. jobless benefits in the week ended March 17. Also, the Conference Board noted a bigger than expected increase in its index of leading U.S. economic indicators.
Crude oil futures fell Thursday, trimming strong recent gains as U.S. stocks were hammered. Hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials spooked investors, as did renewed fears of a trade war. May WTI oil was down 87 cents or 1.3 percent to $64.30/bbl.
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