i checked with the cbot a few months ago and they told me the 5th floor vistors gallerys is closed,but a 1st floor gallery is open im guessing the 5th floor is the one where you can see the pits?
Traders get used to each other's style in the pits. You develop a fine ear for what is going on, and you know ( as in Baseball ) who is good at hitting a curve ball, who waits for the fastball on a 3-0 count, etc. Via yelling and eye contact, you enter into a trade with another trader. Sometimes, you might take down a sizeable order from a floor broker and then parcel it out among guys that stand right next to you . . . kind of like a "Big Fish" feeding the "Little Fish" around you. The trades are recorded on trading cards. These cards are then given to "trade checkers" that are employed by each of the traders. The trading cards are collected by the "trade-checkers" after every 30 minute period. The "trade-checkers" take the trades of their trader to a back room off the trading floor where all of the "trade-checkers" get together checking trades. Using electronic terminals is initially how the trades are checked. Sellers ( in the pit ) are required to report the trade to the exchange. They do this by quickly filling out a "Sellers" card that then gets physically thrown down into the bottom of the trading ring where exchange employees wear goggles ( to avoid eye injury ) and record all of the trades. There is also exchange personnel standing at various places in the ring ( or even in a tower overlooking the pit ) that observe what prices and months are being traded and a "spotter" watches them for trade reporting to a main control center where the prices/months are input into the data feed.
have you tried bellies on globex? not getting any fill is much worse. it is getting better,sometimes. wondering who do use for a broker?
Great thread... How far apart does the electronic spx get at any time from the spx prices in the pit? Does the spx pit lead the electronic index? At the open or close? When a large customer wants to place an order does it go to the pit or to the wire? Thanks
How do people trade in the pits? here an answer to your question OP. They look between their legs. If there is anything, they check if it is down or up. If it is up, they go long, if it is down they go short, if there is nothing they stay flat. Most of the time it is either short or flat.
In regards to the actual SPX cash index, I have found that the quotes on the trading floor are slightly faster since they are using a data-feed that calculates the actual S&P 500 index with a lot more frequency than typical data-feeds. A typical data-feed like E-Signal, Realtick, etc will only send out SPX cash quotes that are updated something like once every 10 seconds. The equity derivative desks for most major investment banks also use very powerful Sun computers that calculate the SPX with much greater frequency, including what is called the "current bid" and "current ask" calculated for all 500 stocks for their program trading purposes.
Sorry I ddint read your post closely enough I thought you were talking about the es vs the big SnP contract