NYSE trading resumes after outage of more than 3 hours

Global Business

"Technical Issue" Suspends Trading On New York Stock ExchangeNEW YORK, NY – JULY 08: Traders wait on a nearly empty trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after trading was halted due to a “technical glitch” on July 8, 2015 in New York City. Trading was to resume in the afternoon. Spencer Platt/Getty Images/AFP

Trading has resumed on the New York Stock Exchange after an outage of more than three hours caused by technical problems.

There was no interruption at the dozens of other U.S. stock exchanges Wednesday, including the Nasdaq, so investors were still able to buy and sell stocks easily.

The NYSE didn’t say what the problem was but described it as internal issue and not the result of a breach of its systems.

The market was already lower as traders worried about China’s failure to halt a plunge in its shares and talks remained stuck between Greece and its lenders.

In the last hour of trading the Dow Jones industrial average was down 210 points, or 1.2 percent, at 17,569. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index was off 25 points, or 1.2 percent, to 2,056.

The New York Stock Exchange stopped trading late Wednesday morning because of technical trouble, though NYSE-listed shares continued to trade on other exchanges.

NYSE said on its official Twitter feed that it was an internal problem and not related to a breach of its systems. As of 2:51 p.m. Eastern time, nearly three and half hours after the outage started, trading had not yet resumed on the NYSE.


John Allison discusses the NYSE’s trading halt

For more on what could be in store for Wall Street, CCTV’s Michelle Makori spoke with John Allison. He’s the CEO of asset management firm, Unio Capital.

John Allison discusses the NYSE's trading halt

For more on what could be in store for Wall Street, CCTV's Michelle Makori spoke with John Allison. He's the CEO of asset management firm, Unio Capital.

The Dow Jones industrial average and other indexes continued to move as orders to buy and sell stocks were sent to the Nasdaq and other platforms around the country.

The outage came as major indexes were heading lower. Concerns about China’s plunging stock market and a logjam in talks between Greece and its creditors weighed on the mood.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 was down 22 points, or 1.1 percent, to 2,059 as of 2:51 p.m. The Dow sank 258 points, or 1.5 percent, to 17,518, while the Nasdaq fell 89 points, or 1.8 percent, to 4,907.

The trading halt at the NYSE came on the same day United Continental had to temporarily ground its flights across the country because of computer problems. There was no indication the outages were related.

Tom Caldwell, who runs an investment firm with stakes in several exchanges, says there are some 60 exchanges and trading venues that can take orders when one goes down, so investors shouldn’t get rattled.

“It’s disruptive, but not wildly disruptive,” said Caldwell, chairman of Caldwell Securities. “You have so many competing exchanges.”

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said President Obama was briefed by White House counterterrorism and homeland security adviser Lisa Monaco and chief of staff Denis McDonough.

Earnest said Obama was briefed on the United Airlines glitch that temporarily grounded its flights.

“There is no indication at this point either that there is malicious activity involved or that it was related to any of the other high profile technology issues that have cropped up today.”

James Angel, associate professor of finance at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, said the exchange shutdown showed both the fragility and the resilience of the modern technological society.

“What surprises me is how infrequently these major outages occur,” he said. “From an investors’ perspective, if you hadn’t heard about the outage, you probably wouldn’t have noticed.”

Angel sat on the board of exchange company Direct Edge before it was acquired by a larger rival last year.

Story compiled with information from The Associated Press.