If Signal No. 3 or higher is raised in Metro Manila by 6:00 a.m., the PSE will cancel trading that day, under new rules approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
At the same time, a system-wide trading halt will now depend on full market impact, not just broker headcount.
The new rule kicks in only if affected brokers account for more than 50 percent of daily trading value, excluding block sales. That replaces the older threshold based on one-third of total brokers, which could halt trading even if less active participants were involved.
Typhoon signals now a trigger for closure
The exchange can now call off a scheduled trading day under these guidelines:
• If Signal No. 3 or higher is still in effect in Metro Manila by 6:00 a.m., the market remains closed.
• If downgraded to Signal No. 1 or 2 by that time, trading proceeds as planned.
New rules on broker backups
All dbrokers must now designate a backup or “correspondent trading participant” that operates on a completely separate tech system.
These partners must be pre-cleared by the PSE and legally bound through a formal agreement to act on the original broker’s behalf during outages.
Brokers are given two months from the effectivity of the rules to comply with this new requirement.
—Edited by Miguel R. Camus
