The earlier open is designed to coincide with European trading hours. By providing readily available access to U.S. based liquidity during their trading hours, European investors can benefit from the order interaction and price discovery available on ArcaEx in the opening session. The early open is particularly important for trading ADRs and other exchange-listed foreign stocks.
"Consistent with our focus on openness, fairness and transparency, operating ArcaEx for this extended period provides a vehicle for order matching and price competition during ordinary market hours for European traders," said Michael Cormack, President of the Archipelago Exchange. "The ability to easily cater to the needs of overseas markets is one of the many advantages of being an electronic exchange, and we look forward to giving market participants the tools that will enable them to interact more efficiently during this time period."
ArcaEx will disseminate quote and trading information via the consolidated tape, and ArcaEx's regulator - the Pacific Exchange - will provide regulatory oversight during the early open period. As a result of the earlier opening, ArcaEx will run the opening auction at 4 AM ET. This service is expected to be made available in the first quarter of 2005.
