Taiwan's over-the-counter market is making its priciest stocks cheaper to trade, which is good news for small investors.

• The Taipei Exchange board approved cutting the minimum price step for shares trading above NT$1,000 from NT$5 down to NT$1.
• The change is set to start in July next year, giving brokers and software firms time to update their systems.
• Smaller price steps mean tighter spreads and lower trading costs on expensive stocks.
• The move follows a global trend toward finer tick sizes and should also narrow the gap between whole-lot and odd-lot prices.

Outlook: Brokers spend the coming months rewiring their systems ahead of the July start.