The Taiwan stock market turned right back to the upside again on Wednesday, one session after it had halted the two-day inning streak in which it had added more than 120 points or 1.5 percent. The Taiwan Stock Exchange finished just below the 7,785-point plateau, and now analysts are expecting the market to head back down into the red again when it opens for business on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is mildly pessimistic, with commodities, technology stocks and properties likely to see selling pressure. Weaker than expected economic data out of the U.S. adds to the negative outlook. The European and U.S. markets finished lower, and the Asian markets are expected to follow suit.
The TSE finished modestly higher on Wednesday, thanks to gains from the construction, paper, food, financial and cement sectors.
For the day, the index jumped 36.80 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 7,784.81 after trading between 7,726.40 and 7,786.23 on turnover of 109.11 billion Taiwan dollars. There were 1,815 gainers and 1,527 decliners, with 334 stocks finishing unchanged.
Among the gainers, Formosa Plastics added 0.60 percent, while Nan Ya Plastics gained 1.64 percent, Formosa Petrochemical jumped 1.61 percent, Prince Housing surged 4.50 percent and Goldsun Development climbed 1.81 percent.
The lead from Wall Street calls for consolidation as stocks posted notable losses on Wednesday, with the Federal Reserve's Beige Book showing some signs of a stalling economic recovery and the Commerce Department reporting an unexpected drop in durable goods orders. The markets fell on the news, which continued to call into question the veracity of an economic rebound in the absence of government stimulus.
In the afternoon, the Fed released its Beige Book report, showing that the economy continued to expand over the past month but indicating that the economic recovery had trimmed its momentum. Notably, the report revealed that the Cleveland and Kansas City Fed districts reported a standstill in economic activity, while the Atlanta and Chicago districts revealed a slowdown in the pace of growth. While most other Fed districts indicated improvements, advances were modest at best. Overall, the report was less upbeat than June's, which detailed a moderate economic rebound.
Before the start of trading, the Commerce Department said that orders for durable goods fell by 1.0 percent in June following a revised 0.8 percent decrease in May. The decline was unexpected, as economists had forecast a 1.0 percent increase in orders for the month. Excluding a 2.4 percent decrease in orders for transportation equipment, durable goods orders fell by a more modest 0.6 percent in June compared to a 1.2 percent increase in the previous month. Economists had expected ex-transportation orders to increase by 0.6 percent.
In earnings news, Boeing Co. (BA) reported second-quarter earnings that edged out estimates, while revenues fell well short of analyst forecasts. Sprint Nextel (S) reported a wider second-quarter net loss compared to last year on revenues that were just short of analyst expectations.
The major averages moved well off their worst levels of the day going into the close but remained stuck in the red. The Dow fell by 39.81 points or 0.4 percent to 10,497.88, the NASDAQ declined by 23.69 points or 1 percent to 2,264.56 and the S&P 500 slid by 7.71 points or 0.7 percent to 1,106.13.
On the corporate front, liquid crystal display panel maker AU Optronics Corp. on Wednesday reported a profit for the second quarter, compared to a loss in the previous year that reflected a surge in revenues. The company's second quarter net income of NT$11.25 billion, compared to a net loss of NT$ 6.60 billion. In terms of US dollar, net earnings were $348 million.
Consolidated revenues were up 55.9 percent year over year to NT$128.57 billion NT$82.47 billion. For the second quarter, the company's large-sized panels reached 29.62 million units, up 32.2 percent year-over-year. Shipments of small- and medium-sized panels exceeded 55.43 million units, down 8.9 percent year-over-year.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.