Hi, Mike -

I use Xpresstrade, and Jeff K. also does. I haven't found a problem, but that depends upon whether I'm interpreting your message properly. You said you got slow fill confirmations "unless trading electronically". I have found the same to be true. The only time I will submit a pit order is with NYBOT, because I have no other choice. They are notoriously slow in reporting fills, depending upon how busy the floor people are. In those cases, when I have pushed the button for an order check, I have found that the Xtrade support staff is already on top of it and pushing the pit for a confirmation.

As Rob and others have often expressed, they trade ONLY electronically. I do too, except for NYBOT Cocoa and Sugar, and THAT'S where my only confirmation problem has been. Xtrade and I are BOTH at the mercy of confirmations that must come from the pits - that's why we avoid them if at all possible (in my case it's not, because I have this addiction type of thing to trading sugar and cocoa).

We've had previous discussions at this forum about pit/electronic hours, and Tom Loge has had a number of postings on it as well. Very helpful. One important point I would like to clarify, using the CD for example, is that even though we trade it during normal CME pit hours, we still submit the orders electronically, and track the @CD price action. Response/fills have been very good. Are you by any chance trading the pit CD instead of @CD during those hours? If so, no action by Xtrade is going to help - you are at the mercy of the pit boys to fill and report back. Same goes for the contracts at CBOT. Even though you are trading during normal pit hours, always submit eCBOT orders. The price differences you refer to - are you looking at end of day, or comparing them side-by-side on an intraday basis? Remember, the electronic "trading day" is many hours longer than the "pit day" and will show a different total range for the day. But that doesn't mean that the prices don't correspond when both are trading at the same time.

Hope this helps - as I said, I hope I did not misinterpret what you were getting at.

Regards,

Joe