LSE crash leaves traders in the lurch

Trading ceased before 9am this morning on the LSE

Trading on the London Stock Exchange was brought to a standstill this morning after a technical glitch prevented traders connecting to the LSE's Tradelect platform.

The glitch comes on one of the busiest days of the year when the US government's bail-out of mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae led to heavy trading.

Trading ceased before 9am and has not resumed.

"It is not an issue with the platform itself, but with the connectivity to the platform," said a spokesman for the LSE. "We are going through the reconnection process at the moment."

A spokesman for rival trading platform Turquoise refused to comment on whether it had seen increased trading volumes this morning, other than to clarify operability.

"Our UK stocks are actively trading and they have been all morning," said the spokesman.