Taiwan share prices are expected to trade in a narrow range next week as investors wait and seen how an indefinite protest intended to oust President Chen Shui-bian develops, dealers said Friday.
The protest, aimed at forcing Chen to resign over mounting corruption scandals involving his family and top aides, begins Saturday and organisers say they will keep going until the president quits.
The protest has also sparked concerns the opposition could mount a fresh charge in parliament to attack Chen, raising the political temperature further.
Investors may additionally stick to the sidelines until they get a clearer picture on the US interest rate outlook after confidence the US central bank would remain on hold was jolted this week by stronger than expected wages data.
For the week to September 8, the weighted index closed up 41.65 points or 0.63 percent at 6,693.11 after a 1.92 percent gain the previous week.
Average daily turnover stood at 72.90 billion dollars (2.22 billion US), compared with 69.18 billion dollars.
"The market is very likely to extend this week's range-bound trade. Political uncertainty still weighs a lot," Grand Cathay Securities analyst Frank Wu said.
"Consolidation is expected to continue to the main theme over the next one to two weeks as the indefinite mass sit-in protest gets underway," he said.