For those of you that didn't receive this info from your broker, here is the official complete explanation: This is a Message From: GLOBEX Control Center Effect Date: Fri May 2, 2003 03:37 pm CST Notice Number: System Update #18 Message: TO: All GLOBEX(R) Users CAUSE: Due to a hardware failure of a major component in the network infrastructure that resulted in the inability of a number of customers to place or verify orders, CME halted GLOBEX trading at 10:40 a.m. CT on Thursday, May 1, 2003. Participants were notified at 10:30 of the pending halt. RESPONSE: Switch-over to the back-up was partially successful, but because of other events related to the initial hardware problem, the system could not be fully restored. CME technicians investigated the issue and worked aggressively to isolate and remove the faulty hardware component. All day and session open orders (i.e., everything except "good-till-cancelled" or GTC orders) were cancelled. Once the malfunctioning component was taken offline and all related systems components were recovered and tested, CME announced that the market would reopen at 2:15 p.m. with a one-half hour pre-open. Between 2:05 p.m. and 2:10 p.m., a select number of firms and customers reported that they could not receive acknowledgement of their orders. As a result of this issue occurring so close to the end of the trading day, CME deferred plans to reopen the market. CME staff continued recovery efforts, repeating steps to cancel new orders that were submitted during the pre- opening period. CME then notified market users that GLOBEX would instead open at its regular time of 3:45 p.m. for the trade date of May 2, 2003. GLOBEX equity markets opened as scheduled at 3:45 p.m. C.T. with the exception of the E-mini S&P 500(R), which opened at 6:15 p.m. Interest rate and foreign exchange products opened at their regularly scheduled time of 4:30 p.m., with the exception of the Mexican peso, which opened at 5 p.m., the Canadian dollar, which opened at 6 p.m. and Swiss franc, which opened at 7:04 p.m. The openings of these products were delayed because some orders had not been successfully cancelled, requiring further corrective action. RESOLUTION: All GLOBEX markets were open and trading by 7:04 p.m. for a trade date of May 2. CME is working internally and with vendors to ensure that a similar series of events not impact GLOBEX trading in the future. If you have any questions, please call the GCC at 312-456-2391 option 2.
I can't imagine what the failure was from that article - it just makes no sense!? What hardware at a major trading firm, let alone and exchange, does not have active/active failover? It sounds like the failover "prodecure" (hardware/software/conection/routers etc. ad-infinitum) was not tested, creating an "unknown" single-point-of-failure, and _that_ is what caused MAJOR grief. I am baffled. nitro
thats a lame excuse. they hurt a lot of people because of that. i think we need a competing exchange.
I work at the CME. When the announcement was made that Globex was shutting down due to technical difficulties, the pit traders and clerks roared with delight. 9950+ Eurodollars will put an end to open outcry, at the CME.
I don't doubt this happened, but it is pathetic. When I visited the Merc, we had a pretty good guided tour from an ex pit trader, and he said that many of those guys will trade in the pit then cover on the minis through their headsets connected to other traders upstairs. The minis give them another tool to manipulate and benefit from. Just imagine one of the big locals stepping in front of a paper order, getting everyone else in the pits excited about a move and buying. Then the minis guys above the pits start buying minis because Joe local is buying the big s&p, along with every other scalper in the world and the whole time, they are buying the minis from the local who started the whole move, because he is liquidating his position the whole time on his headset via his trader upstairs. Or Joe big crap local is buying all day, along with his brother local who everyone respects in the pit, and everyone wants to know how they are positioning themselves. So others buy also thinking they want to be on the same side as the big locals, but the whole time, the original guys are selling 3-4 times as much on the minis, because they got a heads up from their buddy who trades paper that he is going to have a big sell order. So when the paper selling comes into the pits, the original locals are actually sitting very short, even though everyone thought they were long, and they are positioned nicely to ride the down wave from everyone else panicking out of longs. I just don't see why these guys are so against the minis. It seems like a great tool to help them manipulate and profit. Sorry for rambling, but if people don't think these types of scenerios happen, they are fooling themselves.
I've been at places that were supposed to have live failover, but due to the critical nature of the application, they never walked up to it, yanked the plug and see how it fails over. The development and stage systems naturally never had the fancy failover crapola, so no one was ever sure how well it would work.
Why don't you idiots stop complaining about the evil people at the CME who have it in for you. The floor is not going away. The Merc didn't intentionally go down to screw anyone. They make $ being open you know. That explanation of the evil pit guy and his friend, brother, etc buying or selling and hurting poor you is a bunch of crap. I know about a dozen ways you could have hedged a position if you had one when globex went down. If you lost $ maybe you are just a lousy trader.