Do ‘Circuit Breakers’ Calm Markets or Panic Them?: QuickTake

U.S. stock trading saw a series of temporary trading halts in mid-March as frenzied reactions to the coronavirus pandemic triggered the market’s so-called circuit breakers. Such pauses in trading — used by various countries around the world — are seen as a tool to take the sting out of market meltdowns. They can also help address the risk of erroneous trades in an era of high-frequency trading. Though circuit breakers can curb volatility, they can also backfire, as China and the U.S. have expe