Computer Crash Paralyzes London Trading

Still 'edgy,' notes analyst

(NEWSER) - European stocks edged up today for the first time in three days on news of the US government's $85 billion bailout of insurance giant AIG—but an early rally in Asian markets faded, reports Bloomberg and the New York Times. Europe's Stoxx 600 climbed as much as 1.9% after trading opened. The FTSE 100 index in London and CAC-40 in Paris both climbed 1.2%. Trading was mixed in in Asia, rattled by continuing concerns about the US and a Chinese real estate meltdown. More»

Eyes exchanges options business

(NEWSER) - The tech-heavy Nasdaq exchange is looking to expand into the options-trading market, and it's in talks with the Philadelphia Stock Exchange about a possible merger. Nasdaq's bid to buy the third-largest options trading exchange, valued at up to $300 million, comes as a number of bigger exchanges are on the hunt for smaller aquisitions, reports the Wall Street Journal. More»

Time to crack down on algorithm trading, lawmakers say

(NEWSER) - The SEC is on the trail of securities traders who might have "accidentally or maliciously" triggered yesterday's stock market see-sawing, insiders tell Bloomberg , or exploited it to profit illegally. The SEC and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission said after markets closed yesterday that they plan a joint probe into "unusual trading." More»

Swings of over 60% will be wiped out

(NEWSER) - Nasdaq plans to wipe some of yesterday's wildest stock market activity from the books. The stock exchange operator is canceling trades of 286 stocks that went up or down by over 60% in the 20 minutes beginning at 2:40 pm, Reuters reports. The shares affected include Accenture, which fell by more than 99% to a penny before rebounding to close at $41.09. The decision to cancel the trades can't be appealed, said Nasdaq officials. More»

(NEWSER) - Traders using high-speed computers are making billions of dollars and leaving the rest of the stock market in the dust, the New York Times reports. "High-frequency" traders, who use algorithms to make millions of trades in microseconds, have helped big banks and hedge funds bounce back quickly, but critics say the rise of the robots is threatening market integrity. More»