Taiwan stocks extend their rally, with TSMC leading the gains ---Taiwan stocks kept climbing as cooler US inflation eased rate-hike fears, good news for tech investors but a warning sign in the bond market.

• Taiwan's index opened higher and jumped more than 200 points at one stage, with TSMC, Foxconn and Delta all rising.
• US August inflation came in softer than expected, cutting the odds traders put on a Fed rate hike this month from about 50% to roughly a third.
• Long-term US government bond yields still pushed higher, with the 30-year hitting its highest level since 2002 — a sign borrowing costs are not really easing.
• Micron's results blew past forecasts on booming AI memory demand, and most big US tech names closed up even as the Dow fell sharply.
• Central banks keep buying gold as countries move away from the dollar, and new gold-mining funds are launching in Taiwan to ride the trend.

Outlook: Friday's US jobs report is the next big test — a weak number would strengthen the case that the Fed holds off until December.