I did not know much about the stock market or the New York Mercantile Exchange when I stepped onto the trading floors in 1995 to film this craziness. Back then the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) was a floor where traders conducted open-outcry trading using hand signals and verbal communication to buy and sell stocks. The trading floor was bustling with traders shouting, signaling and rapidly moving around the trading pits. The trading floor was divided into several different areas, each dedicated to trading different types of stocks. Traders gathered in these areas to execute trades using a combination of hand signals and verbal communication to communicate buy and sell orders. At the center of each trading pit was a specialist who was responsible for maintaining an orderly market and facilitating trades. Specialists would use their knowledge of the market and the stocks they were responsible for to provide liquidity and match buyers and sellers.

While the NYSE had started to introduce electronic trading in the 1970s, electronic trading was still a small part of the exchange's operations in 1995. It was not until the early 2000s that electronic trading became the dominant method of trading on the NYSE.

Back in 1995 the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) was also a trading floor where commodities such as energy, metals and agricultural products were traded. When the NYMEX started to introduce electronic trading at the time of this video through its NYMEX Access platform, electronic trading was a small part of the exchange's operations. NYMEX facilitated the trading of a variety of commodities, including energy products such as crude oil, natural gas, and heating oil, as well as precious and industrial metals, agricultural products, and other commodities.

At the time NYMEX was one of the largest futures exchanges in the world, with a significant influence on global commodity prices. During 1995 NYMEX was in the midst of a period of growth and modernization as it sought to adapt to new technologies and expand its reach to global markets. The

In 1995 I made this video to announce NYMEX Access, an electronic trading platform. NYMEX Access allowed traders to execute trades electronically from anywhere in the world, using a secure online platform. The platform provided access to NYMEX's full range of products, including energy futures, precious metals, and agricultural commodities. The introduction of electronic trading platforms like NYMEX Access revolutionized commodities trading, allowing traders to access markets quickly and easily and facilitating greater trading volume and price transparency. NYMEX Access continued to operate as an electronic trading platform until 2008.

The globalization of stock and bond trading and the shift to 24/7 trading occurred gradually over several decades. The first significant step towards global 24/7 trading occurred in the 1980s with the establishment of electronic trading platforms and the adoption of computerized trading systems. The 1990s brought the growth of global financial markets and the expansion of international trading led to a greater need for continuous trading. The introduction of the Euro in 1999 and the subsequent integration of European financial markets also contributed to the development of 24/7 trading.

The 2000s saw further advances in technology, including the growth of high-speed internet and the development of algorithmic trading, which enabled traders to execute transactions faster and more efficiently. This further facilitated the move towards 24/7 trading.

Today, with the development of global exchanges, such as the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), and the growth of online trading platforms, investors and traders can access financial markets around the world 24/7.

Regarding both exchanges as well as NASDAQ, the trading day in 1995 was shorter than it is today with trading typically beginning at 9:30 AM Eastern Time and ending at 4:00 PM Eastern Time in the United States.

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