Taiwan Stock Market Plunges Over 1,000 Points at Open, Breaches 45,000 Amid U.S. and Japanese Bond Market Warnings

Rising international oil prices have heightened market concerns over inflation, leading to significant selling pressure in global bond markets. As a result, all four major U.S. stock indices closed lower on Wednesday (18). Taiwan's stock market followed suit on Thursday (19), opening sharply lower at 45,071.34 points. The index plunged nearly 1,000 points during early trading, breaking below the 44,000 level, and fell beneath both the 10-day and 20-day moving averages. Full-day trading volume is estimated to shrink further to NT$820 billion.

Major electronics heavyweight stocks declined across the board. TSMC (2330-TW) opened at NT$2,340, down over 1%. Hon Hai (2317-TW), Delta Electronics (2308-TW), and ASE (3711-TW) also fell more than 1%, while United Microelectronics (2303-TW) dropped over 2%. Quanta Computer (2382-TW) edged lower as well.

Memory-related stocks also weakened. Nanya Technology (2408-TW) and Winbond Electronics (2344-TW) declined more than half of the daily limit, while Macronix (2337-TW) and Phison Electronics (8299-TW) dropped over 3%. Powerchip Semiconductor (6770-TW), Elite Semiconductor (3006-TW), and ADATA Technology (3260-TW) all fell over 1%.

All four major U.S. indices closed in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 116.38 points, or 0.22%, to 53,343.4. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 355.2 points, or 1.33%, to 26,289.71. The S&P 500 declined 53.3 points, or 0.69%, to 7,691.76. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunged 628.54 points, or 4.98%, to 11,992.46.