The stock market in Taiwan fell sharply to close at 5,482 points Monday as investors' confidence was hit by political turbulence in this island province and tensions in the relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits.

The index of the stock market plunged from the very beginning of the day and once touched 5440.72 points, or 5.5 percent lower than the previous day. A total of 343 stocks reached the bottom limit and the total trading was only 76.04 billion NT dollars.

Some local economists forecast a new round of selling and the stock index may further go down. Some even said the index may fall below 5,000 points in the coming days.