Tokyo Stock Exchange Glitch Brings Trading to a Halt

As of December, the Japan Exchange Group ran the world’s third-largest equity market, behind the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, with nearly $6.2 trillion worth of stocks, according to the World Federation of Exchanges. It had more listed companies than any other exchange, the group said.

Thursday’s breakdown effectively halted all trading in the region. Japan was the only major market that had been expected to open, with exchanges in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea closed for autumn holidays.

The shutdown was a headache for investors who had been awaiting the release of a quarterly report from the Bank of Japan that tracks economic sentiment among the country’s companies. The report showed cautious optimism among firms adjusting to a future in which economic activity will probably continue to be limited by restrictions on work and life imposed by the coronavirus.

“Individual investors are losing a day of trading, so a huge number of people will be upset,” said Tomoichiro Kubota, a market analyst of Matsui Securities.

But the overall impact of the disruption is likely to be minimal, he said, noting that the timing — coming while markets were closed across the region and after the American presidential debate — had been “fortuitous.”

“If this had happened yesterday, before the presidential debate, it would have caused upheaval in the markets,” he said, with investors losing the opportunity to make short-term trades based on the candidates’ performances.

Nevertheless, if the issue is not resolved soon it could shake investor confidence in Japan’s markets, just as the country seeks to take advantage of disruptions in Hong Kong to draw business.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/30/business/tokyo-stock-market-glitch.html