Amended Rule 80B
The Exchange amended Rule 80B to revise the current methodology for determining when to halt trading in all stocks due to extraordinary market volatility ("market-wide
circuit breakers"). The Exchange, other equities, options, and futures markets, and FINRA amended the market-wide circuit breakers to take into consideration the recommendations of the Joint CFTC-SEC
Advisory Committee on Emerging Regulatory Issues, and to provide for more meaningful measures in today's markets of when to halt trading in all stocks.
Accordingly, the Exchange amended Rule 80B as follows:
(i) replaced the DJIA with the S&P 500; (ii) replaced
the quarterly calendar recalculation of Rule 80B triggers with daily recalculations;
(iii) replaced the 10%, 20%, and 30% market decline
percentages with 7%, 13%, and 20% market decline percentages;
(iv) modified the length of the trading halts associated with each market decline level; and
(v) modified the times when a trading halt may
be triggered. The Exchange believes that these amendments update the rule to reflect today's high-speed, highly electronic trading market while still meeting the original purpose of Rule 80B: to ensure that
market participants have an opportunity to become aware of and respond to significant price movements.