Taiwan stocks fell on Friday, in line with overseas markets, after the island's central bank warned of growing trade risks. Asian stocks stepped back in subdued trade ahead of the Christmas weekend and Japan markets were shut. Taiwan's central bank left key rates unchanged on Thursday at its final policy meeting of the year, but warned a rise in trade protectionism could hobble the export-reliant economy.
The main TAIEX index fell 0.4 percent to 9,083.48 points as of 0444 GMT, after closing down 0.9 percent in the previous session. The electronics subindex sank 0.3 percent, while the financials subindex lost 0.1 percent. Bellwether stocks declined. Contract chipmaker TSMC lost 0.3 percent, while electronics maker Hon Hai Precision Industry was off 0.1 percent. The Taiwan dollar softened T$0.106 to T$32.136 per US dollar.