"The New York Stock Exchange wants to boost the amount of money its specialist firms keep on hand to buy and sell NYSE-listed stocks, in a move to shore up its defenses against a sharp downturn in the market."

"Some investors and market experts accused specialists of failing to continue dealing in their stock when the market plunged in October 1987. They leveled the same accusations against market makers, firms that play a similar role on the Nasdaq stock market."

"Pellechia said the Big Board's ultimate goal was to prevent a worst-case scenario in which specialists would run out of money and be unable to continuing dealing in a particular stock. ``That is what we are working to prevent,'' he said. ``What we want to make sure is that they maintain a very high level of capital.''"

http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/991122/bb2.html

-- ng (cantprovideemail@none.com), November 23, 1999

Answers

Cool, we cut margin requirements TO (not BY) 25% of previous and then we get the specialists to increase their ability to "shore up" the market. PPT anyone?? 'Course the day traders are gona be the first to fall in a downturn, and THIS will leave the Specialists holding the bag (but NOT for LONG).

C

-- Chuck, a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), November 23, 1999.