Market Inquiry Focuses on One Trader

[IScreamSundays]

Source: New York Times

WASHINGTON — Regulators examining the causes of the brief stock market free fall last Thursday are looking closely at heavy selling in the market for stock-index futures by a single trader, beginning 10 minutes before stock prices began to plummet.

Gary Gensler, the chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said at a Congressional hearing on Tuesday that during that crucial time period, the futures trader, whom he would not identify, accounted for about 9 percent of trading volume in the most actively traded stock-index derivative contract, known as the 500 e-mini futures contract.

All of the trader’s orders were to sell, Mr. Gensler said, while most of the other 250 traders who were active in the same market that day were both buying and selling securities.

As the trader’s orders went through, the futures index on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange began to plummet.

snip>

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/12/business/12turmoil.html?src=busln

[DJ13]

1. Quick, find a scapegoat so they stop blaming our program trading!

[metapunditedgy]

5. An *anonymous* scapegoat... even better! n/t

[htuttle]

2. Merely the butterfly wings that started the hurricane

[TacticalPeek]

3. "All of the trader’s orders were to sell" - how dare he?

Boost boost boost boost boost boost boost boost

[metapunditedgy]

4. Does this sound convincing to you?

“Ultimately, we may learn that the extraordinary disruption in trading, however it may have been triggered, was the result of a confluence of events,” Ms. Schapiro said, “which, taken together, exacerbated what already had been a down day and led to an extraordinarily steep price drop and recovery. However, we are not prepared at this time to draw that conclusion.”

[tom_paine]

10. As much as any Patsy Story convinces me.

Which is to say not at all.

[htuttle]

12. In other words, it was a valid run on the market

...for which they decided to give a mulligan and roll all the trades back. Apparently, the wrong people lost money.

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

6. One of the Bush brothers???

...eom

[NBachers]

7. "His neighbors knew him as a surly, uncommunicative loner"

The Lone Gunman Hypothesis strikes again!

[mackerel]

8. Was he on the grassy knoll?

[Ian David]

9. It was this dude...

http://screenrant.com/wp-content/uploads/eTrade+Baby.jpg

[grantcart]

11. lol I knew it!