The Taiwan stock market has tracked higher in two straight sessions, gathering almost 270 points or 2 percent along the way. The Taiwan Stock Exchange now rests just beneath the 14,000-point plateau and it may be stuck in neutral on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian is murky, with coronavirus concerns tempered by optimism for vaccines to treat the virus. The European and U.S. markets were mixed and little changed and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.
The TSE finished modestly higher on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, technology stocks and cement companies.
For the day, the index gained 103.47 points or 0.75 percent to finish at 13,989.14 after trading between 13,894.70 and 13,995.70.
Among the actives, Cathay Financial shed 0.49 percent, while Mega Financial was up 0.17 percent, CTBC Financial collected 0.52 percent, Fubon Financial sank 0.56 percent, First Financial dipped 0.23 percent, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company jumped 1.84 percent, United Microelectronics Corporation and Hon Hai Precision both fell 0.24 percent, Largan Precision gained 0.90 percent, Catcher Technology climbed 1.31 percent, MediaTek rallied 2.15 percent, Formosa Plastic rose 0.11 percent, Asia Cement eased 0.12 percent, Taiwan Cement improved 0.12 percent and E Sun Financial and Formosa Chemical were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as stocks opened in the red on Wednesday, but the Dow and S&P 500 were able to climb barely into negative territory before the session ended.
The Dow added 59.87 points or 0.20 percent to finish at 29,883, while the NASDAQ eased 5.74 points or 0.05 percent to end at 12,349.37 and the S&P 500 rose 6.56 points or 0.18 percent to close at 3,669.01.
The early weakness on Wall Street was generated in reaction to a report from payroll processor ADP showing private sector employment in the U.S. increased by less than expected last month.
Selling pressure waned over the course of the morning, however, as traders remain optimistic about potential coronavirus vaccines. The U.K. has approved the vaccine candidate developed by Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX), with the vaccine expected to be rolled out next week.
Traders also seem optimism lawmakers in Washington will reach an agreement on a new fiscal stimulus bill as both parties issue new proposals.
Crude oil prices moved higher on Wednesday, as data showed a drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January ended higher by $0.73 or 1.6 percent at $45.28 a barrel.
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