BRACING FOR AN OIL SHOCK : On the Street, Workers Are Unruffled
Despite the wild gyrations of Friday’s stock market, the reaction among Wall Street workers was relatively calm.
While taking cigarette breaks outside the New York Stock Exchange, traders agreed that although activity was very heavy, apparently driven by the Iraq-Kuwait crisis, there was no feeling of panic on the trading floor.
William J. Solnoki, a 23-year veteran floor clerk at the exchange, said volume was higher than normal, but otherwise it was business as usual. “Ever since the crash (of ‘87), I don’t think anything fazes this place,” he said.
Mike Mazer, 39, a postal delivery clerk for the NYSE, said: “I’ve been been here 17, 18 years, and I’ve seen all kinds of things. This is nothing like the crash three years ago.”
“Yeah, it’s Iraq and Kuwait,” one trader who has worked on the floor for 33 years said of the drop. When asked if he thought this signaled the beginning of a downturn in the stock market, he replied, “No, not at all,” noting that computer-driven program trading lessened Friday’s decline.
“Nobody seems worried; it’s all very orderly, controlled trading,” he said. “The machines are doing it all.”
He added that although the Dow Jones industrial average was down more than 100 points at one time, news that Iraq may soon pull out of Kuwait caused the index to rally more than 60 points. As to speculation on any action President Bush might take in the meantime, however, he said the rumor mills were silent. “I haven’t heard anything,” he said.
Another trader had more immediate concerns. “I can’t wait for the weekend,” he said, dismissing the possibility of any long-term market effects. “It’s the usual Friday reaction. By Monday it’ll be back to normal.”
Louis Cardenas, 26, a supervisor at Bankers Trust near the exchange, agreed. “I don’t think it’s going to have any long-term effect,” he said while sitting outside enjoying his sandwich. “Of course, that all depends on Mr. Bush and what surprises he has up his sleeve. But we won’t find that out until the weekend.”
Reading outside on Marine Midland Bank’s patio near Wall Street, money market specialist Anthony Colalillo, 25, said he thinks the Middle East situation is serious but hasn’t noticed any flurries of activity in his office aside from the people who work in foreign exchange.
“I have friends in the oil (commodity) pits who say it’s been really hectic,” he noted, adding that he also thinks the effects will be short-lived. “I can’t really see the U.S. getting involved,” he said.
And Robert Roggio, 33, a purchasing agent for the Church Pension Fund, doesn’t see this affecting him personally.
“I know oil prices are going up, but I don’t drive,” he said, explaining that he takes the subway. “So I’m not really that concerned about it. I don’t think it’s a world-threatening thing.”
