The New York Stock Exchange has its origins 200 years ago. Centuries of growth and innovation, the NYSE remains the world's premier securities market. Over the years, its commitment to investors has been unwavering and its constant application of the latest technologies has enabled it to maintain an unprecedented level of market quality and service. The NYSE has grown into today's global marketplace. Every day, auctions take place on the NYSE trading floor. Bids and open offers are managed on the NYSE.com trading floor page by exchange members acting on behalf of institutions and individual investors. Buy and sell orders for each listed security are met directly on the trading floor, at the assigned locations. The NYSE trading floor contains 20 stations with over 400 trading positions. Prices are determined by supply and demand. Orders to buy and sell stocks flow through a single location ensuring that the investor, regardless of size, is exposed to a wide range of buyers and sellers. The NYSE is an agency auction market. This means that the main point is that trading on the NYSE is carried out through open offers and offers from members of the Exchange, acting as agents for institutions or individual investors. A member firm is a company or individual that has a “seat” on the trading floor. Only member firms are permitted to buy and sell securities on the market f...