BSE, NYSE to have 15-minute overlap

The Bucharest Stock Exchange will close its trading sessions 15 minutes after the opening of the American market, the world’s biggest, after CNVM approved the extension of BSE’s trading session from 16:30 to 16:45. The request was submitted by the BSE Board in July, but it mentioned only 5 minutes. The BSE management cited the need to have an overlap between the working hours of the Romanian bourse with those of North-American markets. On the other hand, CNVM representatives maintain a longer period of time is needed to notice a trend. "CNVM decided to extend the working hours by 15 minutes in order to avoid engaging Romanian investors in the extreme volatility of the first minutes of trading on the NYSE," stated CNVM spokesperson Victor Stanila. "This interval is likely to lead to rising liquidity on the market, because investors would have more time to trade, but I do not believe there will be a significant impact on volatility, as the 15 minutes are too short for a strong reaction from investors," stated Octavian Dragolea, head of IFB Finwest’s Bucharest branch.