Taiwan Stocks Down Sharply, As Techs Drop

Taiwan stocks were leading losses in Asia Monday morning, with the Taiex down 2.1% in early trades. The retreat in the tech-heavy Taiwan market followed sharp losses for U.S. tech shares on Friday, when the Nasdaq dropped 2.3%. Among the leading decliners, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. lost 3.6%, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc. gave up 4.7%, Wintek Corp. plunged 5.4%, and Asustek Computer Inc. was weaker by 3.1%. Still, Dow Jones Newswires quoted an unnamed local trader as saying government-backed funds were "buying actively" to support the market.