U.S. stock and option exchanges said on Tuesday they reached a general agreement on how to strengthen securities markets after federal regulators ordered them to come up with new rules in the wake of Nasdaq's three-hour trading halt in August. Exchanges, including New York Stock Exchange operator NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX, said they agreed on the timing and nature of certain regulatory proposals, including rules designed to protect the securities information processor (SIP) at the center of the Aug. 22 trading halt. The exchanges were given a soft deadline of 60 days after a Sept. 12 meeting at the Securities and Exchange Commission's headquarters in Washington with SEC Chair Mary Jo White. They were asked to come up with reforms in five areas, including a kill switch to halt trading during disruptions and new testing and disclosure protocols for the processors, which disseminate stock quotations and last sale prices to investors. The exchanges' joint statement came as White
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