Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka said August 5 that his ministry will soon send a "strong request" to the Tokyo Stock Exchange to smooth out its operations and avoid a repeat of the August 1 trading hours computer crash.
On August 1 a programming bug shut down the entire computerized trading system at the TSE, halting computer-based trading in 1,702 stocks on the first, second and foreign sections and in 724 convertible bonds for the entire morning. Mitsuzuka noted how important computerization is in the financial world today, adding that it is a key element in the financial system reforms that the government is undertaking in its "Big Bang" effort.
"The smooth operation of daily (trading) is a basic condition for the safety of the financial system, and I would like to see all considerations taken" by the TSE, Mitsuzuka told a news conference.