Securities Trading--SEC Action Needed to Address National Market System Issues: Report to Congressional Committees

United States. General Accounting Office

Jan. 1990 · GAO

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The October 1987 stock market crash raised critical questions concerning the efficiency, competitiveness, and fairness of U.S. securities markets. Many experts questioned the structure of the marketplace and its ability to both withstand periods of high stress and operate efficiently in ordinary times. Market experts and analysts have debated these questions since the crash. Renewed volatility in the markets, as indicated by the 190-point drop on October 13, 1989, and the subsequent record gained the following week, has again created doubt about whether the financial markets are properly designed to meet the demands placed upon them. To identify market structure issues, GAO met with federal regulators, exchange and over-the-counter market officials, market professionals, institutional investors, and academics. GAO evaluated what should be done to address the most important issues identified through these discussions-trading restrictions, market links, and options trading.