The Taiwan stock market has closed lower now in three straight sessions, giving away more than 55 points or 0.8 percent in that span. The Taiwan Stock Exchange settled just above the 7,055-point plateau, and now traders are expecting to see the losses accelerate when the market kicks off trade on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly negative following renewed debt concerns in Europe. Gold stocks are expected to be soft, along with oil and steel companies. The European and U.S. markets finished sharply lower, and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.
The TSE finished modestly lower on Wednesday as losses from the plastic, finance, technology and food sectors were offset by gains from the construction and textile sectors.
For the day, the index lost 28.36 points or 0.40 percent to finish at 7,056.67 after trading between 7,036.92 and 7,093.47 on turnover of 56.11 billion Taiwan dollars.
Among the actives, TSMC added 0.26 percent, while United Microelectronics Corp. collected 0.40 percent and Chimei Innolux shed 3.49 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is weak as stocks moved sharply lower on Wednesday as traders expressed renewed concerns about the European debt crisis. The sell-off came after stocks showed a lack of direction throughout the previous session.
Much of the weakness that emerged on Wall Street was attributed to news that the European Central Bank's balance sheet has jumped to a record high. The ECB said its balance sheet surged up by 239 billion euros in the week ended December 23rd to an all-time high of 2.73 trillion euros. The sharp increase reflected a 214 billion euro increase in lending to euro-area banks.
The value of the euro showed a notable drop amid the news, with the U.S. dollar valued at $1.2938 versus the euro compared to yesterday's $1.3071. The news regarding the ECB balance sheet overshadowed news that Italy held two successful bond auctions that drew yields that were well below a month ago.
The sell-off was also partly due to profit taking following the strong upward move that was seen last week. With the steep drop on the day, the Dow pulled back further off the nearly five-month closing high it set last Friday. However, well below average volume may have exacerbated the downward move, with many traders still away from their desks following the long holiday weekend.
The major averages saw continued weakness going into the close, ending the session near their worst levels of the day. The Dow fell 139.94 points or 1.1 percent to 12,151.41, the NASDAQ tumbled 35.22 points or 1.3 percent to 2,589.98 and the S&P 500 slid 15.79 points or 1.3 percent to 1,249.64.
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Market Analysis
June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.