The win streak has reached five sessions now for the Taiwan stock market, which has advanced almost 480 points or 4.5 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just above the 10,800-point plateau and it's looking at another green light on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is firm thanks to economic optimism and a surge in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were higher and the Asian markets figure to follow suit.
The TSE finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial, steel, cement and technology sectors.
For the day, the index climbed 90.84 points or 0.85 percent to finish at 10,801.57 after trading between 10,759.61 and 10,813.16 on turnover of 139.727 billion Taiwan dollars.
Among the actives, Cathay Financial jumped 1.85 percent, while Mega Financial advanced 1.24 percent, Fubon Financial collected 0.98 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company spiked 1.94 percent, AU Optronics added 0.81 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation climbed 1.05 percent, Catcher Technology perked 1.06 percent, MediaTek soared 3.09 percent, Largan Precision tumbled 2.59 percent, Hon Hai Precision skidded 1.05 percent, Innolux was unchanged, Taiwan Steel gained 0.29 percent, China Steel picked up 0.81 percent and Taiwan Cement surged 2.19 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as stocks moved mostly higher on Wednesday, adding to gains from the previous session as the major averages hit fresh record closing highs.
The Dow rose 98.67 points or 0.40 percent to 24,922.68, while the NASDAQ advanced 58.63 points or 0.84 percent to 7,065.53 and the S&P climbed 17.25 points or 0.64 percent to 2,713.06.
The continued strength on Wall Street came as upbeat data added to recent optimism about the economic outlook.
The Institute for Supply Management said growth in manufacturing activity unexpectedly accelerated in December, while the Commerce Department noted a bigger than expected increase in construction spending in November.
Stocks remained positive following the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting - which showed that most participants reiterated their support for continuing a gradual approach to raising interest rates.
Meanwhile, the Fed said it raised its economic projections due to the massive tax reform bill passed by Republicans and signed by President Donald Trump.
Crude oil futures continued to soar Wednesday thanks to the threat of supply disruptions from the Middle East and a weaker dollar. WTI light sweet crude oil was up $1.26 or 2.1 percent to $61.63/bbl, the highest since December 2014.
by RTT Staff Writer
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