STOCKS : Taiwan Index Plummets to 25-Month Low

Taiwan’s stock market plunged to a 25-month low Wednesday as nervous investors bailed out of the market to avoid further losses. Tokyo’s market closed slightly higher on the yen’s rise against the dollar.

The Taiwan stock index plummeted 228.69, or 4.7%, to close at 4,677.18. It was the lowest finish since June 3, 1988, when the market closed at 4,648.73.

Taiwan’s stock market has fallen 62.6% since it reached an all-time high Feb. 10, and analysts said the market could fall even further this week.

Desperate investors are waiting for the government to take measures to save the crashing market, but the government’s policy is still unclear after the Cabinet met last week to discuss the stock market.

Taiwan’s finance minister, Wang Chien-shien, has said the government would give priority to putting the market in order through regulations and the elimination of insider trading.

In Tokyo, a strong yen lifted the key 225-share Nikkei average 31.32, or 0.1%, to 32,445.92.

In other foreign markets, stocks closed lower in London, depressed by brokers lowering their forecasts for company profits, a reminder that high interest rates are hurting the corporate sector. The Financial Times index of 100 stocks lost 16.2 to 2,355.5.

In Frankfurt, West Germany, stocks resumed their upward trend to close 1% higher as good foreign interest helped keep market sentiment positive. The DAX index of 30 leading shares ended 18.90 points higher at 1,925.13.