Stocks: A Marriage of Convenience

Britain's financial community has taken what could become an important step toward the creation of a 24-hour global marketplace for stock trading. The 185-year-old London Stock Exchange agreed to merge with a group of 187 international dealers that specialize in foreign securities, including such U.S. issues as Boeing and Apple Computer. The combined operation, to be called the International Stock Exchange, will give investors in the U.S. and other countries greater opportunities to trade American shares every morning before the New York Stock Exchange opens.

Wall Street firms admitted they might lose some sales to London in the short run. But most brokers welcome the increasing internationalization of stock trading. If investors are someday able to buy and sell any stocks they want at any time of day or night, that could easily generate enough business to keep brokerage houses around the world busier than ever before.