A seat on the New York Stock Exchange was last night sold for $2.45m (€2m) after falling below $1m six months ago. The near-record price came as shares in Archipelago, the electronic exchange set to merge with the NYSE, hit an all-time high.

The boost in seat price, generally used as an indicator of the NYSE's stock market value, came after John Thain, chief executive of the NYSE, reassured members that revenue and earnings at the exchange are running well ahead of last year.