A snapshot of the TWSE at 9:28am on Tuesday the 22nd of February:
Automatically updating graph showing current Taiex levels
Within 30 minutes of trading this morning the Taiex lost 2% of its value, dropping 177 points. It will likely regain many of those lost points by the end of the day but the drop does illustrate the highly fragile and reactive nature of international stock markets, especially to news of instability in oil producing regions.
The Guardian reported this last night:
10.39pm: While we're waiting for Gaddafi to turn up (or not) on our screens, here's a taste of how the ripples from Libya are being felt on other continents, principally on the markets.
Reuters reports
Latin American stocks fell off a two-week high on Monday as an increasingly bloody power struggle in Libya stoked concerns a spike in oil prices could weigh on economies around the world.
Analysts were hesitant to read too much into Monday's drop, since a U.S. market holiday crimped volume.
The spiraling violence in Libya sent Brent crude oil prices to $108 a barrel for the first time since 2008, reviving concerns that unrest in the Middle East could produce a spike in oil prices that might weigh on economic growth around the world.
"We could see markets trading this week in function of what happens in the Middle East," said Juan Jose Resendiz, an analyst at brokerage Arka in Mexico City.
Further turmoil on the markets is also forecast for tomorrow:
Asian stocks look set to come under pressure on Tuesday, as turmoil across the Middle East sends oil prices sharply higher and investors shied away from riskier assets such as equities. Investors were following reports of escalating violence in Libya with protests sweeping the capital Tripoli and anti-government forces reportedly taking control of the city of Benghazi. Brent crude futures hit $108 a barrel for the first time since 2008 on fears the violence might lead to supply disruptions.
Asian markets will have no U.S. lead, as Wall Street was closed on Monday for a public holiday.
British shares fell 1.1 percent while European shares dropped 1.3 percent as the Libyan violence made markets skittish, with volumes thinned by the U.S. holiday.
The euro slipped on risk aversion, but hawkish comments on inflation from euro zone officials limited losses, while the U.S. dollar and yen gained on safe-haven buying.
Japanese markets will likely fall, with Nikkei futures last trading in Osaka at 10,830, a 27.5 point discount to the index close on Monday.
Australian stocks may make a flat start, with share price index futures up 3 points to 4,898, unchanged from the close of the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index.
