Technical glitch brings BSE trading to a halt

In what is seen as a setback to its image, the Bombay Stock Exchange had to halt trading till 2.30 pm today as it sought to resolve what it called a technical fault. The National Stock Exchange however continued trading.

The BSE had expected to rectify the snag in 1 hour and initially halted trading from 12-1 pm. The halt was later extended by 30 minutes to 1.30 pm. However, trading was now been further delayed by 1 hour on Dalal Street, and at the time of writing was expected to open at 2.30 pm, just one hour before the scheduled closure.

A BSE official said that the problem related to software involved in giving confirmations, but this has been identified and resolved. The official said that trading will start at 2.30 pm.

At noon, just before  trading was halted, the BSE Sensex was trading 336 points higher at 20,368. Deputy chief executive officer Ashishkumar Chauhan said at that time trading had been halted to resolve ''technical issues'' involving ''trade confirmation''.

The development was seen as yielding further ground to the National Stock Exchange in a record year for overseas buying of equities. Divya Malik Lahiri, spokeswoman at the National Stock Exchange, which remained open, declined to comment.

The Bombay Stock Exchange, founded in 1875, is introducing new products and cutting prices to win back market share from its larger rival. The trading halt for a technical fault is the first since 22 January 2008, Chauhan said.