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I'm responding to Howard Hopkin's posting which includes the following
passage:.
" The asshole clerk Andy that had caused me so much stress
was still there. Andy was reading the paper, constantly horseplaying with a
guy from the Smith Barney desk, and answering the phone "S&P's" with no idea
where the market was because he wasn't even paying attention to the pit. On
Thursday morning the other clerk at Rosenthal Collins was asleep on the desk
for 2 1/2 hours... seriously, he slept from right after the open until
lunch!!!!!!! These were the guys that were placing my orders in the
volatile S&P!!!???"
I've traded S&P with the floor clerks, Andy and Chip, on and off for ~8
years.
I found them both very professional, cool, but not unfriendly, very fast
with
fills. I never complain about a bad fill because if it happened, it was more
than
made up for other times by calls back with improved fills.
I'm very suprised by both, the language and the content of H.H. message.
Sometimes clerks treated unfriendly by their customers respond in kind or
a bad chemistry develops between two persons, but I find it most unfair
to discredit publicly a man who works very hard to make a living and
is known to me and also to 2 other traders I know as a good professional.
A response from Andy, who is not an RT member, was forwarded to me
and I'm posting it below because it deserves it and also I find it quite
interesting.
Jan Philipp
+In response to "My 1 ½ days at the CME" from Howard Hopkins
(hehohop@xxxxxxxxxxx) dated 7/17/00 at 8:02 PM:
While Mr. Hopkins only spent a day and a half at the Chicago Mercantile
Exchange, he made several keen "other observations." Time/sales sequence IS
partially random. At times, particularly in a fast market, time/sales
implies that there is a smooth, orderly trade in the S&P. The fact is, with
a market as volatile as the S&P and a pit that is 50 feet wide and 10 feet
deep, locals and order fillers often trade different prices simultaneously.
I applaud Mr. Hopkins' use of a "squawkbox" to support his trading. Having
"squawked" for LOS Systems in its infancy (8-10 years ago), I know how
helpful it can be. I still see to this day how "off" the boards are and
have often unsuccessfully tried to relay this fact to unbelieving clients.
Kudos to Mr. Hopkins for taking the time to see this for himself.
In addition, Mr. Hopkins' "other observations" about local traders ring
true. While screen traders do complain about how "locals have a license to
steal", many do not realize the rigors of actually being a local. Screen
traders do invest in quotes, phones and the like to augment their trading.
However, locals not only MUST invest in a membership to the exchange
(currently ranging from $338,000 to $748,000 or leases of $2,000 to $4,000
per month), clerks' salaries, and up to 10% of profits to out-trades and
errors, they MUST also stand up to the physical demands of jostling for
position and screaming into what often seems like a jet engine. . .every
day. The majority of locals who step into the pit on their first day will
not last six months.
This is where Mr. Hopkins' keen observations end. I will address them in
order:
1. A client of RCG, PSD does not need $100,000 in an account to be granted
direct floor access. An opening balance of $25,000 and maintaining $15,000
are the correct figures.
2. The time it takes to call back fills varies from order to order. From
what I can tell, Mr. Hopkins was a client of RCG, PSD three years ago. At
this time the S&P was undergoing radical change. On 10/31/97, the CME
eliminated nickel trades and split the S&P contract. Needless to say, the
contract became very volatile. The reason clients do not call us to check
on fills is twofold: we report them as soon as we receive them and we would
rather answer the phone to take an order than check a fill.
3. Mr. Hopkins is entitled to his own opinion on phone etiquette. However,
I do call every new client to introduce myself and give "the rules of the
road." At that time I try to understand a client's demeanor: some like it
short and sweet, some like to gab. I apologize if I read Mr. Hopkins wrong.
4. I DO have a vested interest in a client's success. . . my job.
I will not comment on Mr. Hopkins' current broker, except to state that had
he visited RCG, PSD he would have encountered the same "extremely nice and
friendly" people all of our guests meet. He would have been admitted to the
trading floor by one of our brokers, but not been able to stand next to him
in the pit because it is illegal. It is also illegal not to receive an
account number when taking an order.
5. As for being an "asshole clerk", I have been called worse by people who
actually took the time to introduce themselves to me.
6. It is my impression that Mr. Hopkins visited the CME the week of 7/14.
During this period the S&P volume ranged from 41,950 to 58,446 contracts
traded. These numbers are half (or less) than the volume during the rest of
the year. This is summer, people take vacations, newspapers get read,
horseplay occurs.
7. We answer the phone "S&Ps" so people know where they are calling.
Different firms answer the phone different ways. Some answer with their
name, some with the bid/offer, most with "S&Ps." Our firm has had bad luck
with the bid/offer because some clients call to hear it and hang up. A
client is more than welcome to ask for a bid/offer because, contrary to Mr.
Hopkins' belief, we do know where the market is trading.
8. The "other clerk" asleep at the desk is not employed by RCG, PSD.
I do not harbor any ill will toward Howard Hopkins or his current broker,
whom I have to stand next to every day. I DO know the power of the internet
where our spontaneous actions and thoughts can be out there for everyone to
read. If a person attaches a name to a what he thinks is a story, it
appears to lend credibility to him. I hope that all of us will exercise
caution when broadcasting our beliefs and opinions on a tool as immediate as
the internet.
Just wanted to set the record straight.
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