The nation's main stock index fell for a third day after the NASDAQ declined and an analyst said chip stocks won't gain in the short-term.
The TAIEX lost 19.12, or 0.3 percent, to 5,592.74, though it's still up 62 percent since Oct. 3. Within the index, 333 stocks fell and 184 rose. The NASDAQ on Monday shed 1.6 percent.
"As we've seen such strong gains in a relatively short period of time, there is a risk of a correction in technology stocks in Taiwan," said Torben Hansen, who helps manage about US$500 million in global emerging markets at Dankse Capital in Copenhagen.
"A few disappointing macroeconomic numbers out of the US could be the trigger."
Thomas Weisel Partners' semiconductor analyst Eric Ross expects earnings at chip companies to be little changed in 2002 from 2001 and said their stocks are unlikely to rise from current levels.
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