What happens if they decide to shut down the markets?

[.sigma]

lol, i use IB's TWS and there were glitches where on the DOM the prices don't load fast enough in real time and lag in updating only every so often

yea, you'd think by this time in modern history we'd be past toilet paper shortages too

Well toilet paper is made from trees, which you can short with Random Length Lumber futures lol, but I understand how toilet paper can shortage up, but when it comes to computers, everything is digital, once the hardware is updated, we will be able to compute beyond measure.

Its getting ridiculous already, whats that law that says computing power moves via power laws and doubles every "x" amount? Idk, wtf i'm talking about..

Have a safe week Pinetboltz, you trading this week?

 

[SanMiguel]

that's the dilemma -- the high vol makes it attractive to trade

but the risks are:
1) broker platforms freezing bc of unprecedented volumes, everyone logging in to trade from home and at the same time the brokerage employees, their IT staff also working from home
2) if the vol gets above a certain limit maybe they just shut the markets altogether

and it would probably be with little prior notice - so anyone holding onto an open position, even gains, would be frozen

on the other hand:

the US markets are much bigger than the Philippines & pretty much the whole world has exposure to US markets. like even the Norway pension fund made $200 bln in profits last year from being long the US stock market, so if the US markets stop trading, it would have much bigger repercussions and cause a whole lot of pushback, from shops like the large mutual funds, hedge funds, ETFs etc not to mention international funds as well

Volume is not that high. Only about double what it normally is. When news first came out it was 3x 4x maybe. Brokers can handle that (good ones)

 

[pinetboltz]

Well toilet paper is made from trees, which you can short with Random Length Lumber futures lol, but I understand how toilet paper can shortage up, but when it comes to computers, everything is digital, once the hardware is updated, we will be able to compute beyond measure.

Its getting ridiculous already, whats that law that says computing power moves via power laws and doubles every "x" amount? Idk, wtf i'm talking about..

Have a safe week Pinetboltz, you trading this week?

you're probably thinking of moores law

if they had toilet paper futures i'd be all ovre that stuff, would even consider taking physical delivery of those too

yes, traders gotta trade...any ideas in particular you recommend?

personally i've just been scalping FX futures

 

[tommcginnis]

in 2020, there is no more greater example of "social distancing" than the global financial markets. There is no reason to close a financial system which allows capital flows into and out of business entities to fund the economy. There are 10,000 reasons not to fuck with it.

 

[mlawson71]

Staying at home also helps.

 

[gaussian]

That book is a golden classic. I don't care what anybody says.

But I'm curious what you mean by "if no one takes the other side of the trade."

Is that even possibly in our current time? I mean yea maybe even just 15 years ago that was possible, but now? Not too sure.

MMs are people too, and most importantly they are a business. If they can't create a trade where they can profit it would be suicide to try to make a market. It would be in their best interest for the market to come to screeching halt and then offer a firesale, rather than trying to either dump their holdings (again, who takes the other side?) or buy more.

The legend goes JP Morgan "restarted" the market by offering to buy and sell after no one was willing to anymore. The veracity of this is contested but it sure does make a good story.

 

[fractalize]

They open 50% down next time they start it again.Markets don't need a shutdown. If no one will take the other side of the trade the market shuts down anyway

Amen to that, and they sure as fuck don't need halts either. Doesn't seem like true capitalism. Some will fall, some will rise, and new blood always comes in.