What is "open outcry"

n. (context business finance English) A trading method whereby traders gather in person, often in a pit, and call out to all their desire to buy or sell a quantity at a given price, transactions being consummated when two parties can agree on a price. Most frequently used in securities markets.

NYSE Next Generation Model fact sheet, 2008(PDF) trades on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange always involved a face-to-face interaction. There is one podium/desk on the trading floor for each of the exchange's three thousand or so stocks.]]

Open outcry is the name of a method of communication between professionals on a stock exchange or futures exchange typically on a trading floor. It involves shouting and the use of hand signals to transfer information primarily about buy and sell orders. The part of the trading floor where this takes place is called a pit.

In an open outcry auction, bids and offers must be made out in the open market giving all participants a chance to compete for the order with the best price. New bids or offers would be made if better than previous pricing for efficient price discovery. Exchanges also value positions marked to these public market prices on a daily basis. In contrast, over-the-counter markets are where bids and offers are negotiated privately between principals.

Since the development of the stock exchange in the 17th century in Amsterdam, open outcry was the main method used to communicate between traders. However, this started changing in the later half of the 20th century, first through the use of telephone trading and then starting in the 1980s with electronic trading systems.

As of 2007 few exchanges still have floor trading using open outcry. The supporters of electronic trading claim that they are faster, cheaper, more efficient for users, and less prone to manipulation by market makers and broker/dealers. However, many traders advocate for the open outcry system on the basis that the physical contact allows traders to speculate as to a buyer/seller's motives or intentions and adjust their positions accordingly. As of 2010 most stocks and futures contracts are no longer traded using open outcry due to the lower cost of the aforementioned technological advances.