For a sample of NYSE firms, we show that wide spreads are accompanied by low depths, and that spreads widen and depths fall in response to higher volume. Spreads widen and depths fall in anticipation of earnings announcements; these effects are more pronounced for announcements with larger...

When a market order arrives, the NYSE specialist can offer a price one tick better than the limit orders on the book and trade for his own account. Alternatively, the specialist can "stop" the market order, which means he guarantees execution at the current quote but provides the possibility of...

Price improvement is the difference between the execution price of an order and the quoted bid or ask when the order was submitted. We show that expected price improvement falls off dramatically as the size of the order approaches the quoted depth, and becomes negative for larger orders. This is...

Closed-end country funds can trade at large premiums and discounts from their foreign asset vales (NAVs). Investigating this anomaly, we find that individual fund premiums move together, primarily because of the comovement of their stock prices with the U.S. market. Moreover, an index of country...