NASDAQ, Amsterdam and Toronto stock exchanges all experienced tech problems on Friday...

TSE system buckles under volume

TORONTO, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Unprecedented high volumes of trading from the Toronto Stock Exchange's opening bell wreaked havoc on the exchange's reporting systems on Friday.

The TSE said some of its member firms, which receive their information via the Toronto Broadcast Feed, faced delays in receiving trade information after the computer system buckled under the heavy volumes.

In the first 15 minutes of trading alone, the TSE said 33.9 million issues changed hands -- four times the usual amount during that time. The exchange also said 12,500 trades were executed in the first two minutes and 33 seconds of trading at an average of 81 trades per second.

The TSE was unable to determine how many members were affected by the problems.

"There were delays for trade confirmation of the open. In some cases it was just 10 minutes. It doesn't mean the trades didn't get done. They did," said Steve Kee, a spokesman at the bourse. "It was just an exceptional day."

The high trading volumes coincided with "double-witching Friday," or the simultaneous expiration of options and futures.

Kee said trading has increased dramatically this year with a daily average of 160,000 trades, up from 60,000 this time last year. And on Thursday alone, he said, 201,000 trades were recorded.

Link

http://www.canoe.ca/MoneyNews/feb18_tsesyscrash.html

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), February 20, 2000

Answers

(Heavy trading AND computer glitch?)

Monday, February 21, 2000

TSE closes early due to computer glitch

By JOHN McHUTCHION , CANOE Money

The Toronto Stock Exchange closed early Monday afternoon as computer trading problems affected the exchange for the second trading day in a row.

The TSE decided to close two minutes early at 3:58 p.m. EST when the exchange found out that all its members using the order management system were impacted by the glitch.

The problem meant trades were not going through, said TSE spokesperson Steve Kee, adding that the exchange was alerted to situation at 3:45 p.m.

The exchange said the problem is still being investigated. The closure forced the closure of Monday afternoon's last-sale trading session.

Trading volume on the TSE on Monday was over 230 million shares.

On Friday, big trading volume on the TSE meant customers meant customers suffered delays getting computerized confirmations on their trades.

Canoe Money, Canada

http://www.c anoe.ca/MoneyNews/feb21_tsecloses.html

-- Lee Maloney (leemaloney@hotmail.com), February 21, 2000.

The Vancouver Sun

Last updated: Tuesday 22 February 2000

WORLD BUSINESS

TSE computer system struggling to cope with high volume of trading TORONTO (CP) - ~snip~ Friday's problem was unrelated to Monday's glitch, which was in the TSE's order management system, an automatic routing system that helps to fill and confirm orders. ~snip~ (National Post-Globe and Mail)

http://www.vancouversun.com/cgi- bin/newsite.pl?adcode=b-inv&modulename=world% 20business&template=business&nkey=vs&filetype=fullstory&file=/cpfs/bus iness/000222/b022201.html

-- Lee Maloney (leemaloney@hotmail.com), February 22, 2000.