New York, USA – The New York Stock Exchange faced a technical issue on Monday, causing trading to halt for some major stocks and leading to a significant price drop for Berkshire Hathaway. The exchange has since resolved the problem, with impacted stocks reopening and all systems operational.

According to the NYSE, the technical glitch was not the result of a cyberattack, as previously speculated. Instead, it was attributed to a “technical issue” with industry-wide price bands that triggered trading halts for around 40 symbols listed on NYSE Group exchanges.

NYSE explained that the price bands are set by the Consolidated Tape Association’s (CTA) Security Information Processor (SIP), responsible for publishing real-time trade and quote data. This caused a pause in trading for various stocks, including Chipotle and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway.

During the technical issue, Berkshire Hathaway’s Class A shares were temporarily listed at just $185.10, representing a loss of 99.97% from the previous closing price of $627,400. NYSE has announced the cancellation of all “erroneous” trades for Berkshire during the affected period.

Market participants and experts have expressed skepticism about NYSE’s explanation for the unusual trades that occurred during the glitch. Joe Saluzzi, a market structure expert, found it difficult to reconcile the official explanation with the unexpected price fluctuations.

Despite the impact on individual stocks like Berkshire Hathaway and Barrick Gold, the broader stock market remained mostly unaffected. Economic growth concerns led to a slight downturn in stock prices, but most halted stocks and ETFs were trading within normal ranges after the technical issue was resolved.

In conclusion, NYSE’s technical glitch may have caused momentary chaos in specific stocks, but the overall market stability was quickly restored. The incident serves as a reminder of the importance of robust systems and protocols to prevent and address such issues swiftly and effectively.