NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Twenty-five macroeconomics students from New Rochelle High School got a rare opportunity to watch stock traders in action – and the stock market gyrate – when they visited the bustling New York Stock Exchange last Friday.
The students peered in on traders who were utilizing hand-held electronic devices to execute trades, listened to brief talks from several specialists, and participated in question-and-answer sessions with them. The students chatted with Fox Business anchor Nicole Petallides and stood under the famous bell on the floor of the NYSE.
The students also witnessed the impact of current events on trading. Just that morning, President Trump announced tariffs on steel and aluminum. As a result, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 300 points to 24,231 when the students arrived. The market, however, soon rallied and recovered to 24,563 by the time students left the NYSE.
The visit, which lasted 80 minutes, was organized by economics teacher Darren Gurney who has led NRHS Economics Team members on 11 consecutive annual trips to the NYSE. The Economics Team has also been competing in the National Economics Challenge every year since 2009. The competition commences at the end of March.
“I was very impressed with the New York Stock Exchange, a historic landmark, and by how everything was computerized,” said Alyssa Ginsburg, a student. “It reinforced how far technology has truly come in recent years.”
