'Technical glitch' halts LSE trading

Share trading on the London Stock Exchange was halted at the open today, with the operator blaming a technical problem.

Share trading on the London Stock Exchange was halted at the open today, with the operator blaming a technical problem.

"The uncrossing trades at the opening auction are under investigation for potential cancellation," said Lauren Crawley-Moore, spokeswoman for the LSE.

"There is a pause in order-driven securities trading, we are investigating problems in SETS and SETS QX," she said, adding that she was not able to say when the problem may be resolved.

On Tuesday, Borsa Italiana, a unit of LSE, suspended its trading for hours because of a technical glitch.

Technical difficulties on the London Stock Exchange caused a halt in trading for three and a half hours in November 2009.

"It's a little bit frustrating - we've had reasonable moves in these markets in the last few days and no one can trade," Mark Priest, senior equities trader at ETX Capital said. "They've not covered themselves in glory really."

Reuters